Sailor Moon of the 30th Century
by paladin313
Summary: Sequel to Sailor Moon: The Enemy Next Door. Come with us as we explore the time always hinted at of the future of the Sailor Scouts. It is the 30th century, and the Silver Millennium now sits poised for deep space exploration. What shall they find?
1. Chapter 1

SAILOR MOON OF THE 30TH CENTURY

Prologue

It was the worst natural cataclysm in the history of the planet earth. Each event led to another. It hit so quickly and unannounced that there was no way to prepare. The massive area that makes up the Pacific tectonic plate had one massive shift, and not of the ordinary. For some reason known only unto nature and God, the Indo-Australian and Eurasian plates shifted simultaneously, bumping into each other, and from the momentum rammed the Pacific plate for the briefest of moments in the opposite direction. The Philippine plate snapped like a sheet, and caused the most massive earthquake in, not just Japan's, but every nation's history of that region. What made matters worse was that every volcano on the Ring of Fire, as well as on the edge of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian plates went off simultaneously. This was accompanied by massive earthquakes in the Americas from Cape Horn all the way up to the Aleutian Islands. All the quakes were off the scale, and whatever the quakes did not kill, the tsunamis finished the job. To cap it off, the chain reaction of events caused the largest volcanic caldera in the world upon which Yellowstone National Park rested to fully erupt for the first time in millions of years. Of course, with all the ash being dumped into the atmosphere, it made human pollution that many believed was causing global climate change to look like it was benefiting the environment. As a result, a fast moving ice age started to move in. However, despite all the disaster, there was one place left on Earth that somehow managed, relatively speaking, to survive the disasters fairly well, and many people of many nations flocked there for haven—Japan. It was the only place left where there was a chance. Considering the initial death rate, followed by the residual amounts of death caused by the cold, they were somewhat thriving. Because of how things went, no one really cared about race, politics, or nationality, because the survival of mankind was far more important than those petty arguments. Now, Japan was the ark, and the only chance for mankind, and whatever species of animals that could not survive the change. However, right before these events, those responsible for all this would not have had any clue that they would be responsible for this saving grace.

The Sailor Scouts were now about six years extant from their high school graduations, and Tom Reichmann's graduation from Officer Candidacy School. Usagi Tsukino Chiba had, by this point, graduated college with a degree in political science, knowing that one day such things would be useful. She only had a 2.33 grade point average, but it was enough for her. Just the fact that she even finished high school was a phenomenal accomplishment. For her to do this was out of this world. This was also a great thing for Mamoru Chiba, her husband; because she was turning out to be far more mature for the wear, beyond the expectations of many. However, bits and pieces of her personality still remained enough for her to remain enduring to everyone that loved her. Ami Mizuno was highly successful as a doctor, specializing in brain surgery, but also spent time as a pediatrician. Rei Hino was, by this point, the head priestess in the Hirawaka Shrine, having taken over after the death of her dear grandfather's death. They were going to send in a new head priest, but because she did such a good job in running the thing, no one ever challenged her. Her senator father had finally retired from politics and moved into the shrine after Grandpa Hino passed, and they were finally able to patch up their problems of the past. Setsuna was able to become the Juban High principal, while Haruka and Michiru were respected members of the faculty. Hotaru was able to graduate early, and spent time learning psychology and forensic science. The Ark Juban Trio, consisting of Tom, Makoto Kino, and Minako Aino, were also the top recording artists in Japan, as well as in the top ten in the rest of the world. Tom and Makoto married at the same time as Mamoru and Usagi, and they were a happy couple. In fact, even though the Marine Corps was something that Tom always wanted, and still enjoyed, he was looking at just getting out when his first eight year obligation was finished so he could concentrate on his recording career. However, he would not be out in a different aspect, as the others would not be, because of their other great obligation. The Sailor Scouts were still very active, and they were the scourge of crime and terrorism across the globe, their fame spreading greatly amongst the free world for their exploits. They were now well respected around the world. However, their future ambitions would soon be thrown out of whack.

When the disaster struck, it happened to be that the scouts, in full force, with the cats, were making a visit to the emperor in his palace. There was not much that could be done about the quake, but when Fuji went off, everyone expected the worst. That was when something instinctive came up in the head of Sailor Moon, and she held up the Silver Crystal aloft, concentrating on the safety of the people. Before long, the whole of Tokyo was being covered with an energy shield that was penetrating into the ground below the city, and causing it to act as if it were on great shock absorbers. There was still some destruction before this, and sadly, some death, but they managed to do far better than the rest of those in the affected areas. Everything in the shielded area rested in a suspended animation until the volcano stopped. After that, the scouts sprang into action. The shield had created a massive lava wall; so now that would help act as a bulwark. The city was still suffering massive aftershocks, but the scouts were doing all they could to aid the trapped, treat the wounded, grieve and console those left behind, and then to mourn for the dead. However, when Yellowstone erupted, the already severely affected environment was made worse, and it seemed that the world was seeing the complete collapse of civilization as they knew it…but not in Japan.

Because of the initial use of the Silver Crystal, and how its power crept into the earth below Tokyo, it was spreading out now throughout the islands that make up the nation, and it was managing to allow massive adaptation of the area to continue to sustain life. Even then, though Japan was hanging on, there was no way that they could yet have enough resources to sustain everyone. Yet, because of her leadership and great heart in the crisis, people were now looking to Sailor Moon as the ersatz leader of Japan, and even the emperor and the parliament were yielding to her, because these were drastic times. There was only time for decisive action, and no time for bureaucracy. As time passed, they were now calling her empress or queen, and she started to be able to fill the roll well. As the years passed—about three—the ice age was creeping in, and what was left of mankind, and whatever species that mankind could preserve, were now flocking to Japan. Yet, despite what the crystal had done, there was no way it could prevent Japan from being covered with ice and snow as well. Usagi, now being called Queen Serenity by this point, used the crystal once again to create a massive barrier once again, but this time, over all of Japan. When she did, it created a crystal shield strong enough to withstand the glaciers, and to keep them warm by the greenhouse effect that the little sunlight that crept in provided. They began to revive civilization underneath this shelter, but even then, there was only so much that could be sustained in this case. Serenity thus decided to use the crystal to put the whole in a suspended animation until the time came where the glaciers receded enough to call for their awakening. Once they had, they would go about doing what they could to prepare for the retaking of the earth. This was done, and many centuries later, they were freed. They would now face the future of rebuilding this world.

Chapter 1

"_It's morning in America!" (Ronald Reagan's campaign slogan for the 1980 presidential election.)_

Once the glaciers receded enough for all to be awakened, it was determined that it would have been considered the 25th century. However, since it was the restart of all that was known, it was now considered year one of the First Silver Millennium. It was then that those left behind began to branch out and rebuild their world. However, there was never talk, or even thought, that anyone would part from the leadership of the woman who asked that people now address her as Queen Neo-Serenity, because she had proven herself as such a great leader. Why seek for anything else? Normally, human nature is as such that people would become ambitious for power, especially when they spread out, get their own group to rule, and then begin to gain greater aspirations. However, there was no thought to this, considering that great lessons had been learned in the Great Cataclysm, dated as being in the year 500 BSA, (before suspended animation.) If there was ever a chance that the earth could be untied, it was at that point! During the time before the suspension, (where it was recorded that time was not truly tracked until they all awoke,) people began to unite. For the first time, because of all the people there with all the different languages they brought, Esperanto was not scoffed at as a language. Because it was invented with other languages in mind, the teaching of it was far easier than everyone expected, and it became the universal language. Other languages were not forsaken, mind you, but they all became secondary languages comparatively. The most common secondary language was English, but even the English speakers yielded to Esperanto, and thus it was. This was not to say that things were utopian—far from it. However, what kept the wars from reoccurring was not just the queen, but all the scouts with her.

The Sailor Scouts were able to keep law and order fairly well, and because of their abilities and great reach, no one dared to say anything against them, lest they felt their wrath. It was not that they forced anyone to do anything, but they did act as a reminder that order had to be maintained if mankind was to have a chance. Queen Neo-Serenity, (or Serenity for short,) even gave a speech after all awoke, telling them that she was determined to insure that all who were left would not fall into the grips of a new dark age. As a result, her chief physician and engineer—Princess Mercury—did all she could to reeducate the people, and to insure that the knowledge of the world was not lost. She became vital to creating the model of civilization building that all could use once they began to spread out over the world once more. She was even responsible for retaining the crystal shield over Tokyo, making it an impregnable fortress for that city, and the nobility, (which now consisted of the royal family and the scouts.) Princess Mercury began to train many to work under her direct control, and they became the first facet of the new military force that would soon emerge. This facet was the Science Corps, which consisted of the medical division, and the construction brigades that contained the engineers. The construction brigades were initialed in print as the CBs, and as a result, they were called the Sea Bees, akin to the name borne by the old U.S. Navy's construction battalion. It was this division that was not only responsible for designing the face of civilization from that day forward, but she also designed the vessels that would one day actually make up a navy. Princess Venus took a keen interest in this, knowing that they could help speed the spread of people world wide. Yet she had greater ambitions.

Venus wondered why they could not extend this navy into a stellar fleet. Mercury thought that this was a great idea, and she decided to design ships that were a combination of surface, submarine, and spaceships. The main reason for this was that Venus wondered if it would be good to explore at least the solar system, and find out how to use the technology that was being created to terraform whatever worlds that could be done so, and begin to colonize them. Mercury went one step further, and she got the greatest minds together to create something that could actually defy the limitations that were created by the speed of light. It was agreed that it would have to consist of warping space, and that would have to consist of a power source big enough to cause this to happen. As time passed, it was discovered that some minerals in Japan had been transformed by the Silver Crystal, and caused to exist an element that would be set, more than likely, number 114 on the periodic table of elements. This would make it a metal, and not exactly stable in its isotopes. However, as it turned out, its reactions were perfect to create controlled matter/antimatter reactions to cause the warping effect. Before, it had been created synthetically, and when it was, it only stuck around long enough to know just enough to put in on the table. Now it existed naturally. It had a name before, but because of how it formed, it was now called Serenium. The fleet was then begun in earnest, and Venus took oversight of this. There was one thing that she indeed wanted, and that was for this fleet to be just as oriented in science and exploration as well as being a strong military force. Mercury wanted it no other way.

Prince Ceres and Princess Jupiter gave oversight over the rebuilding of the Marine Scouts. In the past, it had been said that Ceres would have ended up subordinate to Jupiter, and that Ceres would end up an enlisted man. However, as Ceres had so aptly pointed out in that time, history could change in this regard, and indeed, they were now peers. As Venus was creating a sea and space navy, and Ceres and Jupiter were forming the Marines to be incorporated with it, Mars was seeking to build elites. She sought out others that had her psychic abilities, and she began to train them to use that, and to become, essentially, the Space SEALs. As this was going on, King Endymion, (Mamoru,) was building an army. This army would, at the first, defend earth, and then it would be sought that they would also defend other worlds as they sought to colonize. While this happened, the outer scouts began creating a global bureau of investigation. Within that, they made up the intelligence agency. There would be none other in it outside of the outer scouts, because of the powers that they all wielded. They would work intelligence in cooperation with the GBI, but they would be the elites, and elite field agents. Their main job was to insure that law and order was indeed maintained. It was through these things that civilization was able to crawl out of the Great Cataclysm and become a great world again. Yet, there was one thing that the people found amazing.

As time passed, none of the scouts, including their cats, were aging. No one could understand why at first. However, as time passed, they discovered that, because of the scouts' contact with the Silver Crystal at the start of the Great Cataclysm, it had made them all immortal. This did not mean that they were invulnerable, but what it did mean was incredible. No matter how much they could be hurt, they could heal quickly, and look as if nothing had ever happened. The only way to kill them would either be beheading, or the complete obliteration of their bodies. This would mean that there would be no succession of leadership, but because of the benevolent and kind rule of the king and queen, no one seemed to mind. Centuries passed, and indeed the solar system was colonized, and even the worlds that could not be terraformed were colonized with technology that would allow for people to live there despite the harsh conditions. Even the moon became a lush, earthlike world. The royal family even had a manor built up there for vacationing. By the time the 30th century came around, the people of the First Silver Millennium were now prepared to go beyond the edge of the solar system and explore deep space. In addition to this, because of events of the past, the Amazoness Quartet arrived in time to meet up with a now 13 year old Princess Usagi, formerly known as Chibiusa and Bunny, and they began to train to take over leadership of the space fighter force, just as the princess had said many centuries before.

On this day, on the dock sat the new flagship of the fleet, and it was being commissioned. Her name was the United Earth Ship (UES,) Artemis, and because it was a new type of vessel, it was called the Artemis class battleship. Venus insisted on this, having loved the loyalty of her cat for all those years. Artemis was as pleased as punch to learn of this, and he was even more excited to hear that this ship would be commanded by Princess Venus herself, and that he would have a place on board. There was excitement as the band began to play the trooping of the ship, and the piping aboard of the crew. It sat in the harbor of Neotokyo, indeed a ship of the line. It was roughly the size of an Iowa class battleship, designed to sail in the water and to sail the stars. The armament was formidable: it had four main batteries three 16 inch rail guns, 24 particle accelerators port and starboard, 12 phalanx anti-fighter blasters, and eight photon torpedo launchers—four to port and starboard. She also bore the latest Neotesla shielding system, designed to stop both beam and projectile attack. However, just as much as she was designed for a fight, she also was loaded with all the latest tools for scientific and space exploration. Her main task was to be for exploration, but she was also ready, as all the other ships in the fleet were, to defend against any alien civilizations that may misunderstand the intentions of the Sol system and thus attacked as a matter of defense. It was hoped that such things would not have to be used. Venus had the staff of command, and began to run up the gangway as the rest of the crew—2,000 sailors and marines—ran behind them, taking their posts all over the exterior of the ship in a time-honored tradition of the commissioning of a vessel. As the royal family watched with pride, wearing their finest uniforms and dresses, they hoped that the peace they had enjoyed for five centuries would continue. Only Princess Pluto would know, and she would not say, because she said that now was the time to make their own future. They just hoped that, this time, peace could last.

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	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"_Farewell and adieu to ye fair Spanish ladies…"_ _(Old sea chantey.)_

The UES Artemis, (BB 1,) was indeed a futuristic looking vessel in many regards, and yet would have looked familiar to anyone who was familiar with the basic battleship design. It indeed had the shape of a sea going vessel, with a low profile on the water, and the shaping to not allow a radar signal to go directly back to its source. In fact, it was lower in profile than what had ever seen in the past, due to their being certain things that were no longer needed. There were no stacks on the deck, nor was there a tall radio tower. In space, such a tower would not be needed, yet it could rise up in an array planet side with a crow's nest if need be. In fact, the conning platform and the signal bridges were one tier higher than the top 16 inch batteries fore and aft. There was a platform on the back for hover vehicles and V-STOL capable flying crafts. In conning platform sat the command chair, and everything that one would expect on the command bridge, including the helm. However, on the aft section, the ship was not propelled in the water by screws, but by an impulse engine that gave it thrust which sat above the waterline. Yet, it could also function underwater in its submerged function. To either side of the aft rested the two warp engines designed for interstellar travel. The smaller vessels built before were used to test those engines, and, after a couple of near disasters, they had perfected the design to near perfect efficiency. The ship was the latest of the first battle flotilla of the Terra Commonwealth, which went with a fighter carrier, six missile cruisers, 12 destroyers, six CT, (cloaked torpedo,) cruisers, and a fighter and bomber wing on the carrier. Each terraformed planet that formed oceans, (Venus, Mars, and some of the moons of Jupiter and Saturn,) were at that point working on similar flotillas which would make up an entire fleet for the United Sol Federation. This flotilla, however, would be the first to penetrate the solar system and take a shakedown cruise around Proxima Centurai and back. Once done, they would then go to towards the closest yellow dwarf that their scientists said gave indications that there were planets around it. Even though it seemed like a normal ship's commissioning, the trip of the Earth Flotilla actually carried a significance equal to man's first steps on the moon between the Old Moon Kingdom and the establishment of the new kingdom.

The crew stood resplendent in their dress uniforms as they stood ready for the ship to sail off into the Pacific. Since it was still March, they were wearing their winter blues. The enlisted personnel wore their Cracker Jacks with the Dixie Cup hats, the back flaps, hats, and neckerchiefs were all colored in the branch they served. For example, if one was in direct ship service, (helm, navigation, mess, supply, quartermaster, etc.) it was marmalade, matching the color scheme of Princess Venus. If you were in engineering, medical, science, and such like, it was light blue. The ladies wore skirts. The marines were wearing the same thing as Marine Ceres, (except that he now wore a white X belt on his uniform, and a Napoleon style hat, marking him as an officer.) The naval officers wore navy blue dress shirts and pants or skirts depending, with branch colored stripes on the pants and around the hat that they wore. This was the site that covered the deck as she prepared to pull out. The only ones not out on the deck was the bridge crew, and they prepared the ship for its first space run. The only uniform that was unique was Princess Sailor Venus, wearing the same costume that she was given when Tom Reichmann first joined the team. She then said to her helmsman, "Mr. Bjorn, take us to port, one eighth impulse power."

"Aye, aye, your highness," he said, and the impulse engines gimbaled to the left, and then thrust as she lurched forward and then to the port. As the ship went, many of the crew started to break out in song, singing, "_I'll sing you a song; a good song of the sea—away Rio! I'll sing you a song if you'll sing it with me, and we're bound for the Rio Grande._"

The king and queen stood on the platform from which they had given their speech and watched her pull away. Serenity wrapped her arms around Endymion's and she began to snuggle up to him as she watched. "I so love when they pull out like that," she said, "I love their singing so much."

"That has been a time honored tradition for centuries," said Endymion, "They were actually trying to set at ease those that were left behind that they would come back."

Serenity's face then went long a touch, and he was forced to ask, "What's wrong, Dumpling Head?"

"They're going to do something no one in the solar system has ever done," she said, "That makes me nervous."

"Come now," he consoled, "You know that Venus can take care of herself. Remember: she was the first of us to awaken, so she can take care of herself."

"It's not just her, I mean, you know Usagi is up there too, and she's going with them."

"So is the rest of the flotilla—they all share the risks. You know the quartet is with them, as is Mars and Mercury. She is on the hospital ship, and they could not have better care in this galaxy…at least that we know of!"

"I wonder if this is what our parents felt when they landed on the moon for the first time."

"Well, I guess it equates, what they are about to do could make that seem like a small thing. It's okay."

They then turned to go to the hover carriage that was to take them back to the Crystal Palace, they could hear them singing yet, though it was fading as they went: "_And it's away Rio—away Rio! It's fare ye well my pretty young girls, and we're bound for the Rio Grande._"

Serenity then thought about the first moon landing, and she then remembered what they had to do to preserve it when the terraforming of the moon actually turned the Sea of Tranquility into just that! It now sits under a crystal dome at the bottom along with the undersea research center, set in such a fashion that water could not even moisten the moon sand, and it was so with every spot where they figured that there was going to be water. She was so glad they were able to preserve the sites, but she also hoped that they could commemorate this event just as well. She looked at the ship pulling away, and then she looked up and said, "Take good care of Usagi, everyone, and come back safe.

Once out to sea, the navigator, Kim-Soo-Lee, said, "What is the course, your highness?"

"Set a course for the north mid-Pacific and then prepare for the launch," was her reply, "We'll be in orbit in no time."

Some of the bridge crew looked nervous, and she said, "If they could get that carrier up there in orbit, we can do this. Just keep it sharp on helm, Mr. Bjorn—one wrong slip, we go into gimble lock, and we plunge into the Pacific."

Everyone became even more nervous, and Artemis, who was sitting on her lap in the conn chair, whispered to her, "I don't think that was all that encouraging."

Once in position, the vessel was brought about 180 degrees and she said, "Okay, now bring us up to one half impulse power, and then gradually bring it to full impulse. At that point, slowly gimble the impulse thruster up as high as it can go, then set it on auto gimble, and keep her steady."

This was done, and everyone on the ship felt the thrust. She then said, "Mr. Mambazo, (communications officer,) open up ship's intercom."

"Aye, ma'am," he said, and he hit the switch. Her voice could be heard to echo throughout the vessel, and she said, "This is Admiral Venus. All hands prepare for launch."

Everyone then went to either their bunks or to special seats to strap down and prepare for launch, save for the few that had to work certain stations in engineering in order to get the vessel space born.

As the ship picked up speed, the ship began to rise up on specially designed hydroplanes that would allow her to skim along at full speed, and also to remain stable as the ship launched. By the time they reached ¾ impulse power, there was a phenomenal wake being kicked up in back, but now the planes were now barely skim the water. This was unexpected, considering that it took full power to the UES Luna off the surface, and that she had two impulse thrusters aft to aid in this. The measurements showed that only one was needed for the Artemis, but they also figured that they would need full power to launch. Mr. Bjorn then said, "Your highness, we may have to try to launch now or we may lose her!"

She nodded to give the go-ahead, and he then gimbaled the thruster as hard as he could, and then just as quickly put it on auto. The nose of the ship began to arc upwards as the planes caught the air and then aided in the lift and stabilization of the craft. Despite this, the vessel was bobbing around gently as if they were still on the waves. The vessel quickly surpassed the sound barrier and it smoothed out some more as a result, but everyone was still on edge. They were able to achieve great speed at this point with only the now thinning atmosphere putting any resistance on the ship. At this point, the blue was thinning out and melting away as she gained great altitude swiftly. Then, just as fast, the inky black of space was all that could be seen, due to their location versus the location of the sun, which was overpowering all the other objects in the sky. They were now in space. The ride suddenly smoothed out completely and the command was then given to turn on the artificial gravity. Once at orbital level, Lieutenant Lee then set the course to catch up with and then rendezvous with the rest of the flotilla. The front plastic steel which made up the conn bridge's outer view to things was then polarized to block out some of the sun, and it was then that everyone was first able to appreciate the beauty of the Earth that had been reborn out of such a great disaster.

Mr. Mambazo then picked up a transmission, and it was Captain Francois Cousteau, (commander of the UES Luna when the queen was not on board,) saying, "Artemis, we have you in our sights, and we welcome you to the edge of the undiscovered country!"

"It was a bit of a bumpy ride, but here we are," said Venus, "Are we ready to test the warping engines?"

"The coordinates are set for Proxima Centuri, you your highness," said Cousteau, and then another voice cut in, saying, "Are you sure that bulky thing can keep up with us?"

It was Princess Mars on board the CT cruiser UES Hirawaka, on which the majority of the Space SEALs were stationed. She knew her ship was designed for speed, and she wanted to just give a little bit of a good natured ribbing to her old friend, but Venus had her own response, as she said, "Honey, this thing was rigged for speed!"

"Really?" said Mars, "Want to put a wager on it?"

"How about the winner gets a week of liberty call for the winning crew?" responded Venus.

"You're on!" Mars quickly answered. The announcement was then made to both crews, and there was a cheer on both vessels, each crew wanting this win. However Venus, to sweeten the pot, said, "The loser has to pull dock guard with the Shore Police for that week when we get back."

"I can't wait to see you out all night with the greenbacks," answered Mars, (referring to the green color of the Cracker Jack flap that marked them attached with Princess Jupiter. They were attached with the Marines to provide shore and ship security, and aid the Marines in that task.)

Another voice chimed in and said, "Then I will act as official witness to this, and I cannot wait to see the result."

It was Princess Mercury, in command of the hospital ship UES Nightingale, and she dearly wanted to be along for the trip, considering it was mainly her designs for the impulse and warping engines, as well as the subspace radio communication system. She wanted to be sure that the vessels could take the stress. The windows on the bridge were made of a substance that Mercury called plasteel, designed to be incredibly strong against weaponry and the pressure from inside the ship that would threaten to pop it like a balloon from the vacuum of space. They had tested the impulse engines by taking the vessels that had already been built and they had taken a trip out to the orbit of Pluto and back. In space, the impulse engines had no gravity or air to fight, so at full power, the vessels could make the round trip in two days. However, when one considered the location of the star they were heading for, all they had to do is set a course that took them below the Earth and out of the solar system. They would be the first humans ever to visit a star outside of the Sun. The ships all aimed and kicked in full impulse power, preparing for warp speed.

Lieutenant Lee set the course and Mr. Bjorn stated, "Ready to go on your command, your highness."

Venus had Mr. Mambazo open up to all the ships, and she asked, "Are all vessels ready?"

They all acknowledged her and said yes, and she then said, "Mr. Bjorn, take us to warp one."

He then hit the switch and then pushed a handle up to its first notch. The engines set on the aft port and starboards of all the vessels flashed, and with a blur, they were gone. The ships were now jumping the gap created by the warping effect, and the sound of the engines could be heard throughout the ship, becoming louder or softer depending on where in the ship one was, and then Venus said, "Take us to warp two, and gradually take us up to warp seven as we safely achieve each mark."

She knew that the bet was there, but safety was of the greatest concern. Any small miscalculation in the system, they could end up linking the warp, and creating a wormhole. God knows where they could have ended up at that point. It was smooth, but there was still that nagging feeling when one does something for the first time, especially something like that. However, they picked a target that was only four light-years away, so they should be back by the next day. (Warp speed is measured as follows: the warp number cubed is then multiplied against the speed of light. Therefore, warp two is eight times the speed of light; warp three is 27 times, and so forth. Thus, warp seven would put them 343 times the speed of light!) At that speed, they were expected to make it there in four and a half days or so. She asked, "Is everything as it should be?"

"Everything's reading as normal, and we are safely cruising," said Mr. MacFarlane, her first office, "It looks like a smooth trip."

"Let's hope so," she responded, "I am going to retire to my quarters. Mr. MacFarlane, you have the conn."

She got up and headed for her quarters, hoping all would be well. However, their actions were not unseen.

About three days into their trip, a vessel of another system passed by an area where the flotilla had passed, and their sensors went off like crazy. After a moment of analysis, they realized that it matched a warp signature, and they were about to pay it no mind. However, when they traced it back, they realized that it went back to a yellow dwarf star in an area of unexplored space. They had never thought to examine that area of the galaxy, because it was not all that interesting. However, when they put that star into their sensors, there was the signature of a planetary system in that area, and they were not sure what to think. At first they thought about just going there. Yet, they began to wonder if that was walking into trouble, considering that they did not know what they faced. Considering the size of the signature, it was either a massive vessel, or a whole fleet. Since they were only one ship, they did not want to get chewed up by whatever they were. Instead, they set course for their home world, looking to report this to the emperor. He would then decide what to do. It could be that they just got their legs underneath them as far as interstellar travel went, and if they were, they may not be able to match their empire. If that turned out to be the case, then the area was ripe for invasion.

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	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_"I always feel like somebody's watching me!" Rockwell_

During the inaugural trip, the royal family decided to take it easy. Serenity stood in her throne room with all manner of servants and aides around both her and the king to wait on their every whim. She stood there majestically, soft spoken, and graciously. They told the people there that she and her husband were going to take a few days to relax while waiting for the fleet to come back. They all bowed and retired. Once everyone was out of earshot, the once formal and mature queen suddenly pumped her fist and raised her knee as she said, "Yesssssssssssss," and went to an antechamber that was just off the throne room. Endymion smiled and just rolled his eyes as he followed her. She immediately stripped off her royal robes and put on something more fitting for a teenager back in the days before the cataclysm. She now affected sneakers, shorts, and a tee-shirt, as well as skating pads. She walked to a book case as she kicked up to her hand a skate board and pulled back a book in the shelf.

One set of the cases opened up revealing a secret passage which led to something of which people would never have thought to be something in which a queen would engage. The tunnel led to an underground area that was filled with the ultimate skate park, one that over which even the greatest in the sport would drool. She then set down her board on a ramp that led into this skater's paradise and took off with a "WHEEEEEE!"

She headed right for her area of expertise—the street course. After a couple of good passes, she stopped and could hear the sounds of another set of wheels. It was near a half pipe that was designed to be ridden like the kind of half pipes upon which skaters compete. She went over, and there was Thomas Reichmann in his "grunge" look, riding that pipe. He wasn't wearing the pads, and that concerned her. She went up and said, "Hey, and what makes you think you can skate without protection, Marine?"

He stopped on the top, and then he went over to her, bowed, and said, "Your majesty, you know we are immortal, thanks to what you did five hundred years ago."

"That doesn't mean that you can ignore the rules," said Serenity, her lower lip curled out in her old Usagi-like way."

"Dude!" he said, "Now you know that only the scouts know about this place, and none of us can die anyway, so what's the fuss?"

Serenity could not fight that logic, so she said, tapping the tips of her forefingers together, "Well…um…it's just a rule, okay?"

She then stuck her head up and said, "Besides, I am the queen, and what I say goes!"

Endymion chimed in, wanting to be sure that something bad did not come out of it, and he said, "It's more of the need of always setting an example, even if no one is there to see you do it. Do that in private and you will get so into the habit of doing this that you will do this instinctively."

The king was warmer in his approach, and worked with reason. Tom could only think that he was the completion of her. She had indeed matured over all those centuries, but somewhere there was the beloved Usagi that they all had come to know and love. He said, "Okay, I give up! I'll get my gear!"

He skated over to his bag and put on his gear, a smile on his face. He then said, "Come on, your Majesty, let's hit the pipe!"

She agreed, and they were all over it. It was good for this, because it took their minds off the dangerous mission that the others were undertaking. Yet, there were other things they knew not of, if which they did; they would not even think the trip a massive undertaking.

Many light years away, two ships that had been at Proxima Centurai were now returning to their home system. Their ships were no more than what looked like wavy tubes, but they considered themselves more practical creatures, and they did not feel the need for style. They were a race of beings known as the Gnarl. They had evolved from, of all creatures, mole rats. They were hairless, pink, and had that severe rodent-like face. Their eyes, however, were far more developed, but their jaws were no less strong, filled with long pointed teeth. They could be extended out and opened wide, becoming excellent weapons for them. The creatures from which they came could gnaw through solid rock, and they had just strengthened that over time. They were grotesque looking things, even to creatures that did not look remotely humanoid. They were also not all that desirable, because there was only one thing that they had in mind: conquest. It was then that the captain and a few choice officers shuttled down to their home world for a court with the emperor and his wife. (In truth, the empress was the one with the power, considering that mole rats have a hiving concept not too dissimilar to bees, having one queen rat and the rest her servants. The emperor was more of the figurehead, but he could make decisions. It was often that she would choose to rule through her husband, so every male vied for a chance to be her bride when she was single. However, she could override her husband when she wanted.)

The shuttle came down over the landscape, but there was not even one mark on the surface to show that there was anything sentient living there. They came up to a mountain, got close to its surface, and a hole opened up to them. The entire civilization was underground, and this mountain was the royal palace. The guards rendered proper military homage as the group exited the shuttle and followed the escort to the throne. For any other creature used to more temperate climes, they would have asked why it was that the heat was blasting in the place. Being what they were, they required much in the way of heat, and designed their world to give them what they needed. They entered the throne chamber which was filled with all manner of guard and servant, just itching to do anything for their beloved empress. The entourage bowed deeply and they were bid arise, and entrance before the thrones. Emperor Grenj said, "Stand at ease, gentlemen. The message we received said that you discovered a new world."

"We discovered a warp trail that led back to a yellow dwarf in the constellation of Skretch the Warrior," said the ship's captain, "That can only mean that there is a civilized race there. We must see how far along they are in space travel, though it cannot be much, considering that this was the first evidence anything was there."

Empress Squila leaned back for a minute, and she said, "It could be worth investigating. We always need new home worlds in which to expand. There is only so much a planet's crust can be exploited. We need more breathing room."

After some more pondering, Grenj said, "What kind of exploration force could you put together for this purpose?"

"We can send in an exploration corvette," said the captain, "It would be inconspicuous and unnoticed. We could get you the information in a few weeks."

"Excellent!" exclaimed Squila, rubbing her hands together with a sinister grin, "I can only hope it has several habitable spots. They will rue the day we ever showed up on their doorstep"

Grenj then said, "Pick out your stealthiest, fastest exploration corvette, the best infiltrators, and take care of business. We await your return."

The entourage bowed again, and took their leave. The two on the throne now looked greedy with sinful joy as they thought of the new worlds that they would now conquer.

The flotilla returned to Earth with great celebration and adulation. They all landed and pulled in to the Neo-Tokyo port with great joy, and the reporters were all over the ship commanders. Venus was all agog, but Mars was not so joyous, and no one knew why. Once all this was done, the scouts were invited to the throne room for a private ceremony. Serenity looked a Mars and said, "Princess, why are you so sad? The lot of you has done some great things!"

Mars mumbled something incoherent, and both the king and queen both looked oddly at her. Venus said, "Um, I think their majesties could not understand you, darling."

"ilstthbt," she mumbled louder.

"I LOST THE BET!" screamed Mars.

Everyone looked stunned at the outburst, but Serenity looked at her out of the corner of her eye, with a bit of a smile, and looked at Venus, asking, "What kind of a bet did you two have?"

"We were going to see whose ship would reach the star first, and…_she lost!_" said Venus, the last part being said in a singsong kind of way. Serenity looked at her, grinning, and looked at her in a knowing way, saying, "Ah, now I understand! So, what was the payoff?"

Venus gladly volunteered the information, and she said, "She, and her personal SEAL squad have to pull shore police duty for a week while my crew gets a weeks furlough."

Now Mars began to protest, and said, "Hey, we had to make a course correction!"

Yet, Mercury said, "In all actuality, I looked at the race data, and calculated that, even if you had not made the course correction, you still would have been behind by 1.652347 seconds."

Mars groaned, knowing how exacting Mercury can be, and Mars knew there was no way of getting past her. Ceres then said, "Hey, don't worry. The missus and I will make sure you get the best set of Marines and Greenbacks to pull duty with you. Besides, with the training your people have, they would be a great addition to the guard."

"Now that I know this," said Serenity, "This is locked in, and you cannot get out of it."

Mars now looked at her, and some old things started to creep in as she said, "Hey, I think you're enjoying this!"

Endymion wanted to speak out, but Serenity jumped in, saying, "Oh dear, I upset the great Mars. You know, there was once a time where you would not have hesitated to harass me, knowing I could not respond. Well, what goes around comes around dear friend. Tell me, was harassing me, or anyone, worth it now that that tables are turned?"

Mars hung her head, knowing the queen was right, and said, "I apologize, your Majesty…"

However, serenity giggled and said, "Please, don't feel bad, dear friend. You know we all love you, and we will make sure that your guard experience will be pleasant and a learning experience to all involved."

Jupiter then said, "I'll show you the rotation, and you can pick the best time for your unit."

This seemed to relax the formal situation, and everyone began to banter like the old friends that they were. However, Endymion spoke up and said, "Before we sit down to eat and kibitz, there is a formal issue with which to tend."

With that, Mars, Mercury, Venus, and Chibi Moon with the Amazoness Quartet were all called front and center and given Meritorious Service medals for their efforts. "This was just as great as other great space advances, and you all have earned them."

They were all happy to receive these, but PallaPalla was all agog, "Ooh, that's so pretty! PallaPalla likes the pretty jewelry! Is that for me?"

JunJun sighed and said, "Yes, it's for you! Ugh!"

After that, Ceres said, "Okay, who wants pizza?"

Everyone cheered as they headed to the skate park for some rest and relaxation. They needed this time to prepare for the next phase. The UES Artemis was going to start exploring with at least one destroyer and one CT cruiser to see if there are more habited worlds, and if there was a way to gain alliances. If the New Moon Republic was going to last, it was going to have to have strong allies to ensure no one like Queen Beryl ever raised her head again.

However, they were not the only one seeking to investigate. Out of warp came the mole rat corvette at the edge of the Oort Cloud that sits on the extremes of the Solar System. As soon as they came out, they had to be careful, because there were many dirty snowballs hurtling around them that would think a corvette no obstacle. They decided to head in from there to allow for the least amount of detection in their approach to the system. At that, they were able to pick up another band of the ice balls that sat tight around the edge of the outermost body orbiting the system's star. The captain then gave an order for some probes to head into that system so that, by the time they arrived, they could have some more detail as where to head once they had shown up. The whole system did not seem like much, but one could never tell. It looked like a good enough thing, he just not sure what was inhabited, or if anything would be worth it. He would also find out about their defenses, because, if they were too strong, that would make the whole thing "not worth it." In any case, he knew that, whoever lived there had better get ready, because their lives, as they knew them, were about to end.

4


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"_I always feel like somebody's watching me…" Rockwell_

The corvette stood just inside the Oort cloud, and he realized that they had yet one light year to go, but he found it very odd that this cloud could be caught in a solar grip like that. He could only think that, because they were so light, the very fain hint of the star's gravitational field was what kept them there. He decided at that point to get closer before launching the probes, and warped into the edge of the planetary field. It was there he also noticed another field of potential comets in a belt, and he knew they definitely were held in place by the yellow dwarf. It was here that he launched the probes. They arched over the belts and skimmed along what looked like the planetary orbital plane. The first thing the probes ran into was two small objects that had a planetary shape. The one that was about 750 miles in diameter was obviously big enough for its own gravitational field to make it round. It was not a comet, nor was it an asteroid, and if it was a very small planet, its atmosphere was frozen to the surface being so far from its host star. However, the smaller one confused him, because it was only 250 miles in diameter, but it was round. Normally, objects that small cannot form like that, and the way the two orbited each other around a central point, he had to conclude that they were a double planet, the smaller having come out of the larger when they formed. Yet, despite the miniscule size, there seemed to be a small installation on the surface, so the probes did what they could to stay out of detection range. The cameras, however, did detect a small military outpost there, and what looked like a mansion inside a large, clear dome. The constitution of it was a crystallized form of steel—a transparent steel, if you prefer. However, locked in the dual orbit of the two objects was what looked like a space shipyard, and there looked to be a small flotilla just nearing completion. The probes moved on before they invited something that the captain knew they could not defeat.

The probes then ran into a planet that looked to be about ten times as big as their home world. They scanned it, and they realized that it was all gas, with some liquid methane, and a core, nothing more, along with some faint debris rings around it. However, there were several satellites orbiting this blue, stormy giant, the largest being about 1,700 miles in diameter, and it possessed a very thick atmosphere. He found it interesting that it orbited in the opposite direction than its host planet, as well as rotated that way. The probe went to its maximum to scan through the cloud layer, and it discovered that, though the surface was still cold, it was not uninhabitable. In fact, it had the markings of having been altered to be able to hold life, considering the distance to its host star. As the probe approached, they then understood why. In orbit around the gas giant was a pair of gigantic mirrors that were designed to gather, concentrate, and then reflect both the direct starlight from its host down to the heavy cloud layer, and also the reflected light from its host planet. Despite the efforts, the surface looked like it never got above sub-artic at the equator and in the lower temperate zones. In that area was discovered a large area of civilization, a military post, and again, another large mansion under a clear dome of the same material. Another spaceport was found, and this time, with a completed flotilla. The probes were then wisely sent on.

They next came to another gas giant—green in color—and very odd for a planet. Its axis pointed directly at the star, and it spun on its side. All its moons spun that way as well. They knew it was on its side due to the more notable, but still faint, field of eleven rings about the planet. Its largest moon was a class D world, all rocky and with no atmosphere. However, there was a notable installation there, as well as the same mansion set. This made the captain quite curious. He wondered if this was some kind of royal or presidential palace for the system's leader to live from time to time, or if it was a part of some family thing. He knew that this would warrant more investigation later on down the road. Again, another common thing was the flotilla that seemed to be common in those two other worlds. So far, he counted about six large ships either finished or still under construction, and several smaller ships. Already, that was sizeable, but not unbeatable. However, he also wondered if this was also going to be a common theme.

The probes then reached the orbit of a huge gas giant, very colorful, and with notable debris rings. It was a beautiful sight, but what amazed the captain was the number of moons this world had. It was almost as if it was a star in its own right and had a separate system. It was then that he was able to first detect the fourth gas giant that he would next visit, and he realized that these four worlds, if they had formed together, may have formed a small star themselves—probably a blue dwarf—something that was not uncommon in the galaxy. To have stars like this that form solo were rare, and systems like this even more rare, because a binary system's tidal pull would have ripped any planets apart before they could form. This world had a large moon about 3,400 miles in diameter, and it thrived with life. It was blue-green with land and oceans, a nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere, and he noted that, by the way things looked, that it too was altered to have such life upon it. They also had the large mirror rig, but not as prominent due to the closeness to the star it had versus the other. He also noted how there seemed to be several places on the moon's surface that seemed to tap into its crust, and by further scans, the captain noted that the place was rigged for geothermal technology to power things, and to warm the moon to temperate and livable conditions. Again, the pattern was also reasserted, and the probes moved on.

The next one was huge—about 300 or more times the size of his home world. There were two large moons there as well, one quite tectonically violent, and the larger was also a thriving world. By the scans, the captain realized that this had once been a class D world, but there had been some major planet forming done to it. The only reason he could think that the first objects he ran into with the mansions and bases were not so formed was because of the distance from the star from where they sat. The one around the blue giant was only barely habitable with the aid of the mirrors. This one, however, was close enough to where it could be like the large one around the previous giant. It too had the mirror rig to aid it, as well as the geothermal helps. This was also the first of two worlds, (the other being around the ringed planet,) that had a sizable population. This gas giant definitely looked like a star that never ignited, with many violent storms, dominated by the large red one on the southern hemisphere that stood out like an eye. He also noted that, to ether side of the giant, and sharing its orbit, were large patches of asteroids. In addition to the fleet, there also seemed to be several installations upon the largest of the asteroids in either field. This was in addition to the flotilla there, and due to the heavy military presence there, he got the probes out quickly before they were detected.

The probes then detected the massive asteroid belt that orbited where a planet logically should have been, and the captain could only figure that they were parts of a planet that just never came together. Even then, the world would have been no bigger than one of the satellites that he had already encountered. It was not such a field that they were thick enough to walk across, but there were enough that he had to keep his eyes peeled for a random rock coming out of nowhere to take out the probes. However, on the four largest, there were contained installations, but no flotilla. Instead were a couple of escort ships, and a slough of transports. He also noted that there were several fighters circling around the largest, and upon closer observation, they looked like they were doing training runs. There was a notable facility there for fighters, and it seemed that this must have been the home of their fighter wings. This would have to be noted. He noted by the observations of the squadrons there that the fighters were very good at what they did, and that would have to be countered during the invasion. With that, the probes moved on.

He soon came to a world one half the size of his home world, and it too was a blue-green habitable world. It too also had the marks of world shaping, and it was the first world that had a very sizeable civilization on it. It only had two natural satellites, and both were no more than captured asteroids. The probe then searched for the common mark of royal residence and flotilla, but this flotilla was floating in the water near one of the largest ports. This interested him, considering that his fleet had no space faring vessels that could land on a planet's surface. If it came to it, that would have to be something the Gnarl would have to consider if these creatures were ever able to mount a counteroffensive. There were also more military instillations, and this gave the captain the first hint that he was approaching the nerve center of things. He noted that the next planet was on the other side of the star, so he sent them to the next world in hopes to swing around and find it.

The next world was almost the same size as his world, blue-green and much inhabited, and it was a tropical paradise. Along with the common pattern, (as well as the flotilla on the surface instead of others in orbit,) there were also several amusement parks and what looked like resorts all over the two massive continents on the planet's surface. Indeed, this must have been the tourist site of the system, and he noted that the inhabitants seemed to wear very colorful clothes, flowery in print, and they were all very tan. In scanning them, he would later analyze the main sentient form of life to see what they were all about. In contrast to this was the world closest to the star, which was an incredibly hot and barren rock. It was about the same size as one of the moons that were inhabited, but there only seemed to be a lonely outpost and flotilla, as well as mansion. However, the dome around it was quite tinted for obvious reasons. He could only think that it was more out of need than want that anyone would be there. As he passed the massive fusion reactor that is a star, he finally came to the last planet, which was third in line to the last two, and this one was interesting. It looked like the fourth and second planets, but it also looked like it became this way rather than it being shaped and formed this way. Its satellite, however, did look like that it was, and it was interesting the size of the satellite. Proportionally speaking, it was the largest satellite to circle one of these planets compared to its host planet. Here, the flotilla was in a port by a large subcontinent island that had an animal-like shape to it. It was the most populated of the worlds that the probes had found. The city by which the flotilla was moored was huge. It was very modern with technology on par with their own, and by the massive crystalline tower in the middle of it, this had to be the capitol. This was confirmed by the most massive of the palaces he had yet encountered by the probes, and it sat under a large crystal encasement. A similar mansion rested on the satellite, and he knew this had to be the home world. With a few exceptions, the inhabitants all seemed to have the same hair, skin color and complexion. (Do remember that five hundred years have passed on a united Earth, and by this point, with the exception of genetic throwbacks, the people of the Earth would have interbred to the point of unifying the human race into one appearance, save the exceptions, and the royalty.) He now had enough to go over for some time, and he was excited at all he had found. What concerned him was the size of the fleet they had. Each world had its own flotilla, each one with what looked like a battleship of some kind, a carrier, and many different kinds of fighting craft. They appeared to be a formidable foe indeed, and thus he would have to analyze things to find a weakness, or find out if he had to come back for more information. The probes were then sent into the star, and the corvette headed home.

Back at Jupiter, when the probes were there, one of the scanners went off, saying that it had detected something. One of the members of the science wing came up to look at the data, and found the scan odd. He then began to try to get a fix on them, but by the time he did, the objects were gone. He then went over the data, and tried to get a good look at them. The best images were blurry at best, (considering how small the probes were,) and they looked no more than common weather satellites around Ganymede. Yet, the sailor there said that they were not there before, and then appeared. Indeed, that was odd, but considering how much stuff was floating around the solar system by that point it could have been anything. He dismissed it, but did note it in his log. He would have to send this to Princess Admiral Mercury to see what she could make of it. It was not much, but did warrant a touch of investigation.

Back on earth, the royal couple were outside on their balcony, looking up to the now terraformed Moon in the sky, and she always liked how the largest ocean on the moon still kept to the rabbit shape that people had seen there for millennia. Instead of being gray, it was blue and pretty. "Isn't it beautiful?" asked Serenity, "I cannot believe that this was once how the moon looked, and how we got it to look that way again."

"We indeed have come a long way from the Cataclysm," said Endymion, "Yet, what surprises me is how we all get to see it forever."

"Do you ever get bored of this?" she then asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, we'll never die, unless our bodies are vaporized beyond repair. Do you think that we will get like some people have said when people find immortality? They say that we should get so bored, we would almost desire death."

"Then we have to always keep our lives interesting. With ruling a whole solar system, and you being a part of the Navy as well as being the queen, you have a whole galaxy to explore. I believe we are what we are at the right time. I could say that I would have gotten that way had we become this way any other time."

She looked up into his eyes dreamily, and she said, "I could not imagine an eternity without you."

They then slowly embraced and kissed a passionate kiss, to which she said when they came up for air, "You can to that to me forever if you like, milord."

He smiled and said, "Indeed, I will."

They kissed again and snuggled closer, and as they separated, she looked up in time enough to see two streaks in the sky that zipped by and vanished. "Oh, look: two shooting stars—one for the each of us! Let's make a wish!"

"I already have mine," he said with a smile as he scooped her up and headed for the royal bedchamber. If she only knew what it was that she saw. As they went, she suddenly had an odd feeling, and she said, "Funny: you ever get the sensation that someone was watching you?"

"How's that not normal? We all get that way from time to time."

"I don't know. I feel so exposed."

"You probably feel the anticipation of that," he said with a knowing a look in his eye.

She dismissed the feeling and giggled. It was going to be a good night, and she hoped that her wish of peace forever would indeed rest on the stars she saw.

4


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"_Off we go, into the wild blue yonder!" United States Air Force Song._

Indeed, the solar system had come a long way in five hundred years. The technology for terraforming had finally been perfected, and the time had come for spreading out amongst the worlds. There were a couple of issues, in that the planet Mercury, Titania, (Uranus' largest satellite,) and Pluto could not be terraformed. Mercury was far too close to the sun for anything to come up. The atmosphere on Mercury would have to be thin in order to keep things from getting too hot, and that would expose it to dangerous rays from the sun beyond the violet in the spectrum. Besides all that, even if the atmosphere was thick, the ozone layer would have to be so massive to block the massive amounts of those waves that the planet received on a regular basis, and that would cause things to become too hot without all that to sustain life anyway. It was hot enough, but that kind of an atmosphere would have heated up the planet further in the same way that the planet Venus had once been. Titania was on its side like its host planet, and thus only one side of the world could be exposed to the sun at one time, and then the other over the decades that it took for Uranus to go one orbit around the sun. Pluto was too far away to have the same kind of effect that the mirrored arrays did around the closer worlds.

Despite the efforts, there were some interesting things that happened. Triton, (Neptune's satellite,) was a world that was like the state of Alaska on Earth on a constant basis. Thus, the animal life placed there was that which would thrive in that kind of environment. Ganymede ranged from the sub-artic to Canadian weather. The exception was Titan. Considering the thick atmosphere it already had, all that happened was that the atmosphere was made more like a class M world, and the arrays were then placed. With the geothermal effects, all the worlds were made habitable. However, the wildlife took interesting turns. The humans normally had an artificial gravity set to one G so that they could be about that as much as possible. The reason for this was that people could go from Earth to other worlds and back and suffer no ill effects. Yet, the animals did not have that privilege unless they were pets. As a result, a bit of microevolution took place as the animals adapted to their new environs. What they were when they were introduced were not what they became by this point. Thus, they all became unique to their worlds, and they would not have been able to make it elsewhere outside of a zoo, where the conditions could be adjusted to fit each animal's needs. Each world thus became beautiful and unique in their own rights. Another interesting thing was that, on the worlds with the arrays, people and creatures alike had to get used to never having total darkness. The sun-side of things made it seem like everything was in twilight, but when things spun to the mirrored arrays, it seemed like two suns in the sky, and they were just as bright. Thus, children were taught never to stare into the arrays in the same way that the inner three's children were taught not to stare into the sun.

Triton became the place where winter sports were held regularly, with things established in the competition areas to mimic Earth conditions. It also became the place for extreme sportsmen to brave the wilds of that world. Triton's main export was the freshest water in the system as the ice in the poles were cut, thawed, filtered for debris, and sent all over the solar system. Titian was a watery world. It had land, but an amount of oceans proportional to what one would find on Earth. Thus, on this world, many water sports and recreation was done, as well as seafood exportation. Ganymede became a woodsman's paradise, where hunting and camping was abundant, and it's major export was lumber. However, the amount of lumber needed was not as much as it had once been on Earth, as other materials had been found to actually make wood obsolete in some areas. Yet, there were some things that were needed, and so lumbering was big on that world, considering the forests that sprouted there, and due to the massive size and height of the trees due to the low gravity. Therefore, enough went out to provide a sustainable economy, but not so much as to ravage the forest. There was even the policy to plant one tree for every taken. Mars and the Moon became much like Earth, and they were versatile in what they provided. They became the commercial and industrial centers of the system, able to take their own raw materials, as well as those from the other worlds, and make the things that people wanted and needed. Venus, due to its pleasant weather and tropical conditions, (a far cry from what it had been,) was the home of tourism, and many resorts of many flavors dotted the planet's surface.

The whole system was a monarchial federated republic. Each world enjoyed semi-sovereignty and a republican system not too dissimilar from the old Roman Republic, except for the royal heads. The government of the system was mirrored by each world that had a population, save for the noted exceptions, and the government of the whole federation was three-branched, with the inclusion of the crowned heads being a part of the system. The two houses were a house of commons, and a house of lords, but each world only had two nobles to represent it, selected by the congresses of each world. The house of commons was filled by direct election, but only commoners could run, and no noble could vote for them, as they represented the will of the common man. They were also elected proportionally to the populations of the respective worlds. However, they way it was designed provided for a check and balance between the houses. The rest of the government was modeled after the United States Constitution with some interesting additions. The judicial branch could be made up of nobility or commoners, and it made for some interesting twists when it came time to replace a justice. It became something not too dissimilar to how the parties in the old United States tried to pack the court with people more favorable to their points of view. Yet, just because they put someone there did not necessarily mean that they would always issue jurisprudence in the way that that party had thought they would. Thus, the courts never got out of hand. The executive branch had both a prime minister and the monarchy. Normally, the monarchy would be hereditary, but since they lived forever, that was not going to happen. However, everyone knew that Queen Serenity was benevolent as a ruler, and never feared her abusing her power against them. The prime minister was elected in an Electoral College system to make the voices of the people on each world equally weighty, preventing the most populated areas from constantly deciding things politically.

Legislation was like the United States Constitution, but the passing of laws had an extra step. The prime minister had veto power first, and like before, two-thirds of the legislators of both houses could override that veto, but the royalty could not. They were represented by the House of Lords, so if they overrode, they did so in the name of the crown. This kept the office of prime minister from becoming a puppet of the crown. If the veto was overridden, or the prime minister signed it, it was sent to the king and queen for final approval. It would take both of them agreeing to sign it, or else it would be vetoed by default. (This made for some interesting spats in the palace!) If that happened, or they both vetoed it, then it would take three-fourths of both houses to override the veto. Once that happened, or both the prime minister and the crown signed it, it was law. There was another way that things could end up law, and that was by either executive order or royal proclamation. If there was no challenge from the congress, then it became law, for silence was affirmation in that regard. However, if a majority of both houses stepped in, they could reverse the order. If it was a royal proclamation, it would take two-thirds of each house to reverse the proclamation. This became the law of the system, and similarly on the lower levels of each world respectively.

Each one of the original scouts—inner and outer—was considered princesses, despite the fact that Mercury, Uranus, and Pluto did not have any populations to rule. However, they had direct control over every military installation on their worlds where they lived if they were not working on Earth, or with the fleet. Everywhere else, similar systems had been established. As a result, a free and efficient system of planets was enjoyed by all that dwelt there. This time between the Cataclysm and now became known as the Silver Crystal Millennium's golden era. (For those who wonder, it is not that the whole thing was only going to last a thousand years, but it was the name of the republic, paying homage to the original Moon Kingdom's Silver Millennium, where peace had reigned that long before Queen Beryl's War.) This was a time of peace and growth, and now they sat on the verge of further growth, as they prepared for the exploration of the galaxy.

Meanwhile, back on Skretch, (the home world of the Gnarl, named for a famous warrior of their history, and the same one for which the constellation was named,) the scientists there were pouring over the data that the probes had returned. The fact that they could world shape was evidence that they were dealing with a system as sophisticated as their own. Another concern was the size of the fleet. Since they had never combated them, they could not know how strong they were in that regard. By their count, there were nine battleships, nine fighter carriers, 54 heavy cruisers, (the missile cruisers,) 108 destroyers, 54 light cruisers, (the CT cruisers,) but an unknown count of fighters. By any standards, this was a formidable interstellar fleet. What worried them was the seeming capability of each flotilla being able to land planet side and continue operation, whereas their vessels, though they could enter the atmosphere, there was only so far that they could penetrate it without losing control of the craft. By the count of bases, their army also had to be massive. They could only guess this, because, beyond the land bases, they could use the logic of knowing that the population of any group has the capability of putting into an effective fighting force one-twenty-fifth of its population. By their estimates, the world that seemed to act as the capitol held about six billion people, the second and fourth worlds from the host star held about three billion and one billion respectively. That did not account for the other worlds, but even without them, the armies that could produce would be massive. If they failed in their bid for invasion, the counterstrike would have been disaster for the Gnarl. They also had several worlds occupied in their system, but the scientists and generals wondered if they could muster enough of a military to counter them. With this, they went to the royalty to tell them of what they had found, and their misgivings about any kind of military action.

The royal couple sat on their thrones, both contemplating what they had been told, with Grenj looking troubled, but Squila looking annoyed and bored at the whole thing. Once they were done, Grenj said, "Well, they are strong, and what you say concerns me. I wonder if we have finally encountered a race of being equal to ourselves. Perhaps it would be better to sue them for peace and come to an alliance before it gets to a war?"

Squila took one of her cushions on her throne and hurled it at her husband, angrily saying, "Silence, you wishy-washy weakling! It may seem bad, but we are the superior creatures of the galaxy. Our power structure is great. We already have about seven star systems under our heel, serving our every need, and some were twice their size!"

"Pardon me, your majesty," said her head scientist, "Do remember that they were barely a space-faring race when we found them, and they did not have ordinance on par with our technology. This is different."

"THIS IS NO DIFFERENT!" she thundered as she stood to her feet, "We are the superior, and we are the stronger! We will just have to test them somehow, and then come up with a plan from there. By your data, it seems that that system is rich in resources, perfect for what the Gnarl System needs to survive. There is only so long the other systems can sustain us, and the more we have the longer things last. We cannot take a chance at taking something so developed. Now, GET MORE INFORMATION, YOU BOOBS, AND FIGURE OUT A WAY TO DESTROY THEIR ABILITY TO RESIST!"

The bowed quickly and started to scurry out of there, lest she become more upset and demand their heads on a charger. Grenj wanted to say something, but he knew better. His power only stemmed from her, and he knew where the true power lay. At the same time, he always wondered why they had to conquer rather than just ask for help. It boggled his mind. Nonetheless, his wife was determined, and he dared not resist her, lest she divorce him and leave him in the cold.

About a week later, on earth, the UES Artemis was preparing to leave again, but this time for an extended trip. This one would be a solo trip due to the mission. The main task was to explore, find inhabitable worlds, and make alliances, if possible. Instead of commanding their individual branches throughout the fleet, the inner scouts and General Ceres were on board to head their departments directly. The only difference would be that Queen Serenity would be in command of the vessel. Normally, this would fall to Admiral Venus, but she gave her full respect to the queen, knowing her place. She took up position as the first officer, with Mr. MacFarlane acting directly under her and aiding her in the task. Jupiter as head of the Greenbacks, (the security,) Ceres over the Marines, Mercury over the engineering and medical, (seeing she specialized in both,) and Mars in charge of the SEALs. In reality, Serenity knew that Venus was really running things, considering she knew the ship best, and her crew, and had to admit that Venus only let her borrow it from time to time. Both cats were there as well, while Endymion was left to run the show with the aid of the outer scouts. The king and queen both held each other on the gangway, neither wanting to let go. "Honey, do you have to go?" asked Endymion, "Can't the others handle this?"

"Sometimes I have to be queen, and sometimes I have to be one of the scouts," she answered, "Considering that this is the first time in a while the whole team has been together, I could not pass this up. It could be that we might need to act in that regard and all of us being together could really do some damage."

He smiled and laughed a bit, saying, "You really have matured. Centuries ago, you would have balked at doing something like this. You were such a crybaby."

She smiled but also glared at him, giving him a playful shove, and then embraced him again. She said, "Sometimes, I'm still a bit of one. There are times that I am the queen, and then there are times when I am just good ol' Usagi-chan. Sometimes I wonder if two people don't live up here in my head. I mean, I still cannot use Kanji characters—that I even need to now—and I only got through school with a C average. I still don't like work and study, and would rather be having fun. Yet, the queen in me wants me to serve and lead, and even be a scout from time to time."

"I do say, you do look sharp in that outfit, Captain Hornblower."

"I don't think I could even match up to that character, but I would say, as he would, that this is indeed a ship of the line."

"Because of what you were, are, and what you have become, that all makes me love you that much more."

With that, they kissed passionately just as the boatswain's whistle blew with the announcement of, "All ashore that's going ashore."

They parted, but staying forehead to forehead as they held hands, staring into each other's eyes, as they heard Mars shout, "Come on, your Majesty, daylight's wasting!"

Mars was the only one to be able to get away with talking to her like that in public because, although they still bickered from time to time as they had in the past, Serenity knew that Mars had been there all those years, taking care of her beloved princess, seeing that she was always safe. Serenity owed her much. Endymion then let go and said, "Go, and be the woman I love so much. My love for you can only grow while you are away."

He bowed and headed his way. Serenity took one moment to look at him as he parted, and she then headed to the conning platform with the rest.

This trip was going to be different. This trip would consist of visiting four star systems: Lalande 21185, Epsilon Eridani, 61 Cygni alpha and beta, and Tau Ceti. These four worlds hold the best chance for life around them, though not all yellow dwarfs. It was initially thought that there were no planets or intelligent life there, but now that things had advanced, they found planets about these stars. The orange dwarves and the one red dwarf were as such that could sustain life giving planets depending on how things went. The biggest surprise was when it was discovered that the binary system in the constellation Cygnus had planets. Normally, a binary system would not permit the formation of planets, considering that the orbits of the stars are normally elliptic in nature, getting close to each other as they pass around a central point in sort of a dance-like move. That kind of action would destroy anything trying to form. However, this binary system was spread out enough as to where this would not happen, and it normally takes 700 years for an orbit to complete, being 81 AU apart at their closest. This could allow for things to form, and this was what they sought to find out.

The ship prepared for their launch into space, pulling away from the dock at one eighth impulse power to much fanfare. Serenity took her seat in the chair and, after having cleared the harbor, called for one eight impulse power, and then called for full power as they readied for launch. Luna sat curled up on her lap, watching through the window as the ship rushed faster and faster. Artemis was around Venus' neck and said to Luna, "So, are you nervous?"

"Why should I be?" she responded, "This is perfectly safe."

She then stiffened as the ship rose up out of the water and began to sway as the impulse engine began to gimble to keep her steady. Serenity squealed as Luna sunk in her claws out of instinct, and she pushed the cat off her. "Luna, what was that all about!" she demanded.

"Sorry," she said, "I…uh…" she stopped herself, knowing that Artemis was watching her, seeing if her bravery was as strong as she had claimed. It was then that the inner scouts began to laugh a bit, and Jupiter then said, "Luna, you haven't changed a bit!"

Luna just lifted her head with a bit of hurt pride and went to curl up in a corner somewhere.

Just as they broke the atmosphere, Mercury stated, "A small group of fighters are approaching—about five of them."

Mr. Mambazo then said, "They are hailing us."

"Hi, Mom!" shouted a voice over the subspace radio, "We just came to see you off!"

It was Usagi with the Amazoness Quartet, who acted as her wingmen. Serenity normally would have taken offense at the informality, considering this situation would have called for more decorum. However, due to some of the nerves on board, this seemed to lighten the mood, and she let it go. "Good to hear from you again," said Serenity, "It's been a long week."

"We had training to do," said Usagi, "You know that the mission has to go through."

"I know, baby," she said, "Just take care of daddy while I'm gone."

"You know I always do!" she said with a giggle.

At about that moment, the five approached the ship, with Mercury saying, "We now have a visual of you."

They were in a wide wedge shape, and as the got near, JunJun pulled her fighter up and away from the group in a Missing Man formation as a salute to the crew. The others shot quickly over the ship as closely as they could safely, and it was heard from CreCre, "Clear skies, UES Artemis, and as the Arabs say, 'May Allah grant you find food and water, and may Allah grant you find nothing more.'"

Mr. Mambazo, knowing the saying, answered, "Thank you for the well wishes, and clear skies to you as well."

With that, the communication, and Lieutenant Kim-Soo-Lee then said, "Course, your Majesty?"

"Lalande is first on the list, so make it so," said Serenity, with all the grace of a military commander. However, Mars looked at her and said, "You are such a Jekyll and Hyde."

She smiled at, and glared at, Mars and said, "Don't you have your team to tend to?"

Mars gave a sly smile and said, "As you wish, your Majesty."

She bowed and headed out, as did the others to tend to their departments. However, once alone, she heaved a sigh of relief. This was the first time she had taken military command of something this big, and she said to herself, "Come on, Dumpling Head, you can do this. You have handled it for five hundred years; you can handle it for a few months in this."

Luna could not help but detect the nerves in Serenity and came over to rub on Serenity's leg, purring all the way. Serenity picked her up as Luna said, "Relax, because you are going to do well. You have changed so much. When I first met you, you could not fight your way out of a wet paper sack. Now look at you: you are the pillar of strength."

"I'm only that way with you and my friends," she said as she hugged Luna, and Luna purred contentedly. It was going to be a good trip.

6


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"_The undiscovered country, from whose bourn no traveler returns, puzzles the will, and makes us rather bear those ills we have, than fly to others that we know not of? Thus conscience does make cowards of us all." Hamlet_

Everyone headed off to their respective departments to tend to things. Venus went to her station on the bridge to look over the status of the different departments, and then went about to inspect the well being of the vessel with Mr. MacFarlane alongside her. Mercury went first into the medical deck to make sure that all was what it should be, and then she headed to engineering to inspect the drives. She was still awed by the fact that she was able to discover the feasibility of cold fusion, allowing for the matter/antimatter reaction for warp speed. Such things also made the weapons of the kingdom feasible as well. She looked over the engine, and heard her purring like a kitten. One of the crew in his crackerjacks, marked in the light blue of science and engineering, "Don't worry, your highness, the shakedown cruise only seemed to make her run better. She's the fastest thing in the galaxy at this point."

She smiled at the statement, knowing that it was just him trying to keep her calm, happy, and encouraged. Mars entered the SEALs deck, and an immediate, "Attention on deck!" was heard thundered throughout. "At ease, as you were," responded Mars, and she began to walk the deck. Normal military decorum would have called for everyone to be before their quarters, ready for inspection. However, these were top paramilitary troops, expert in asymmetrical warfare and demolitions. They had enough discipline to keep all their quarters to proper military standards. However, due to the nature of their mission, despite the ranks that many held, that only mattered mission-wise. They were more like a big family, knowing that conditions like this were good for the kind of team cohesion that they needed for their kind of mission. With the exception of Princess Admiral Mars, things were a bit looser. However, she often dropped that stiff guise with them, though she kept a respectable distance in order to maintain respect for her authority.

This was not a luxury provided to the Marines and the Greenbacks in Security. All the sailors were either dressed like the senshi, but a bit more subdued, or they were dressed in the crackerjacks if they were men, unless they were doing some kind of manual labor. Everyone wore the color scheme on their neckerchiefs and their crackerjack flaps, (and skirts if they were women,) as well as on their footgear, that matched the senshi underneath whom they worked. The term "greenback" went to the security because of that color scheme, marking them out for the most dangerous position onboard ship. The Greenbacks and Marines were used for security on ship, and the Marines had the Greenbacks' aid planetside if the situation called for it. This gave both branches the shortest life expectancy in the military. Because of that, discipline was tight, because they had to be that tough.

The admiral and general came on deck as "Attention on deck" was called, and everyone snapped to. They were all in formation, the Greenbacks to one side, and the Marines to the other, all carrying their weapons. The captain in charge when General Ceres was not there called, "Company," to which all the platoon lieutenants called, "Platoon," in response. Captain DeKlerk then called "Present…ARMS!"

Everyone then saluted with their weapons, bringing them all to "present arms" position. Ceres, who had his saber at right shoulder arms brought the flat side of the hilt to his eyes, and then swung the blade to his side, pointing the blade down and to the right. Jupiter rendered a hand salute, considering that she was not carrying a weapon at that time. The guideon bearer brought up the guideon, and then snapped it down, point facing straight out. After the salute was returned, the unit was ordered back to "order arms," as Ceres resheathed his saber, and Captain DeKlerk gave the command for them to prepare for inspection. All the platoons then separated into inspection formation, and the troops prepared for the walkthrough. Lieutenant Inchardi came astride Jupiter as Captain DeKlerk came astride Ceres. The two pairs separated and headed to their respective sides of the room.

Each of the sailors and Marines was armed with the same saber and Meteor Shower but they also had a standard assault weapon. This was suggested centuries ago by the general himself, stating that such things would be useful in a standard fight. The Meteor Shower could only do so much, and it was terrible at range. Therefore, a rifle was sought. All the worlds put in bids, but never so much more than those of Earth. Even though mankind had interbred into one race, with exceptions, they were still somewhat culturally diverse to either the worlds they now occupied, or the cultures that had existed on Earth prior to the Cataclysm. After much had been done in research and bidding, it was the Kalashnikov Arms Company that came up with the accepted weapon, being the first to combine the cold fusion technology to a handheld size. This allowed for electromagnetic pulse to propel the bullet, thus making for caseless ammunition, and allowing the average foot soldier to carry seemingly endless ammo. The round itself was a special tungsten/titanium/steel alloy considering the tremendous speeds the round could achieve—nearly the speed of light. This was the same concept behind the rail guns that the UES Artemis bore, (using the same kind of round, but one that is highly explosive,) but on a much smaller scale. The designation became the Automatic Kalashnikov 3001, (or the AK-01.) They could be fired at semi or fully automatic, with absolutely no recoil, considering that the pulse flung the round rather than pushed it, (and thus allowing for Newton's third law to fall into play.) If it pushed the round, the recoil would be impossible to restrain. This became the standard assault rifle for the Marines and the Army. However, the SEALs and the Sea Bees decided on another design that fell just behind the AK-01. This was a particle accelerator created by Springfield Armory done in a bullpup design, semi or fully automatic. This was preferred by the two aforementioned groups due to the nature of their missions, and they bore the designation of the M-7 bullpup assault rifle.

The two pairs went down the ranks of the platoons of their respective companies, stopping before each sailor or Marine. As they did, that one would perform "inspection arms," and then they would go over the person before them, occasionally snatching a weapon by the barrel to inspect its cleanliness and fitness. As they did, they would occasionally ask a question: what is general order such and such, what is the maximum effective range of the weapon, what is the Code of Conduct, and so forth. Sometimes a compliment would be given, and occasionally a minor correction on their uniforms or weapons was mentioned. No one, however, was so far off mark that it called for any harsh correction. These two companies were well disciplined and trained. After that was done, the ranks were called to close together and the pair of flag officers took their position on the platform that overlooked the troops. Since Jupiter was in high command of both the Marines and the Greenbacks, she was the one to take occasion to speak. She took to the lectern and began to speak: "Welcome one and all to the greatest mission of your lives."

The sailors all responded with a "hooyah," while the Marines all responded with "Oorah!"

Once they had settled down, she began to speak again: "As you know, we are heading off into deep space, making the first visit of our solar system to another planetary system ever attempted. This does bear some meditation to the weight that such a mission carries. We are literally heading for worlds unknown, and that would also include possible intelligent life. We know not what life we might face, to what level of advancement that life has achieved, or if they will even be friendly with us. Understanding this, we must then face this with the gravity it deserves. We are not there to conquer or to exploit. If they are a race that is not nearly as advanced as us, then we are to respect that and leave them alone unless our intervention helps prevent the extinction of a sentient race whose extinction was not of their making. If, say, because of war, a dictatorial government, foolish science gone awry, they have fated themselves for this, then we will make an assessment to intervene on one certain group or another to remove them from their home worlds if it is determined that their fates were caused by the fools in charge, quarantine them from our technology, and resettle them on a new world to face their own fates. If after that, they fail, then, in reality, we must not interfere, no matter how much suffering there is, because they were given the chance to survive, and the squandered the chance. As much as that hurts to let something like that happen, we must not come to the place where we feel it is our place to force things on them for which they are not ready. There would be far more disaster and death caused by our actions then if we tried to interfere as little as possible. The lessons of history in the area of exploration of Earth itself teach us much in that regard.

"Having said all that, it should drive home the point that the mission we face will be dangerous. We have no idea what kind of wildlife we face, the nature of the environments there, the dangers of the wilderness, or what we shall face should there be sentient life there. It could be that some of you will not be going home. However, I am led to understand that this was a risk all of you were willing to take, for the formation of these units were done strictly on a voluntary basis, with full understanding of everything I just said. With that in mind, always remember you represent the UES Artemis, and the United Worlds of Sol, and that calls for the highest in professionalism, discipline, toughness, but at the same time, it calls for the highest in compassion, respect for others and other cultures, and a willingness to always see justice done, thought the heavens fail. Company commanders, we now turn it over to you, and let us begin our standard ship duties. Let's have a great mission, and let's do all we can to make sure everyone comes home."

Another salute was given, and it was given to the commanders, who then gave it to the lieutenants, who then gave it to the platoon sergeants. Jupiter then said, "Officers, we will meet tomorrow at 0800 hours for a staff and status meeting. See you then."

The officers saluted, and the couple went their way, straight to their quarters.

They made their way along the halls to their chamber, running into Venus along the way. After exchanging a few pleasantries, the three of them found themselves in the Reichmann's quarters, talking about old times. Before long, the instruments were out, and they were singing their old hits and favorite songs. They finished off with "Sloop John B," and they began to discuss putting on a show for the crew on their return trip as a way to celebrate a successful mission. In truth the Ark Juban Trio were technically still a group, but because of their duties, they rarely ever performed together. Thus, they decided that it was long overdue for such a thing, and they decided to transmit the show back to the Sol system as a reunion concert. After Venus excused herself to meet with the operations department officers, the couple sat quiet for a time. Then, Jupiter eased herself into his lap putting her arms around his neck, as he put his arms around her waist. They kissed passionately, and Jupiter said, "Five hundred years, and I still love you just as much as back when we were just kids in high school."

"Girl, you are so much a part of me now, I could not bear to live without you," responded Ceres, and they kissed again. She then let down her hair, and they began to cuddle. She then said, "I could not live without you, and I am so glad you came with me."

"To explore the unknown is something I would not want to miss," he said, "I know that Captain DeKlerk could have handled it, but I just could not bear to be without you."

"Just keep saying that," she said, "and I shall be yours forever."

She held him tighter as they kissed, and he picked her up as they headed towards the bedchamber. Knowing how their duties might prevent them being together often without being exhausted, this moment, they felt, was needful, because it would be a while before they could be this intimate again. Besides, they were still that passionate for one another, and they really did not need an excuse, but because of the way things were, they did what they could to make it a memorable evening.

A week later, Serenity and Venus were again on the bridge when it was announced that Lalande was approaching. The command was given to come out of warp and to full impulse power. There sat the red dwarf in all its splendor. As they scanned, the science department stated that there were about five planets orbiting the star, and the second planet out was class M. It was about one half an AU from the star, and Serenity told the ship to pull into orbit around it. Once done, a full scan of the surface was done. The planet was about a 57 to 43 percent ratio between water and land. The atmosphere was earthlike, about the size of Venus, but with a heavier oxygen concentration and less nitrogen proportionally. The surface had the standard artic, sub-artic, temperate, and tropical zones. There were initial signs that showed the season variation was not as severe as on Earth, due to the fact that the planet only tilted about 12 degrees off center axis. The planet teemed with life, but the initial scans showed that the planet had no signs of sentient life. It was a wilderness on the surface, and it was decided that a thorough exploration of the surface was needed to determine if it was fit for colonization, considering that there was no civilization they could disrupt. Serenity then called for a meeting of the inner scouts with the department heads to discuss strategy. As they headed off, Serenity lingered, looking out at the world below them. "So much like Earth," she said, "And yet it could be so different."

She felt a knot form in her throat, now suddenly feeling the anxiety that such endeavors create. She was now not certain if she had made the right decision to go, considering that she had every intent to go on shore herself once it seemed safe enough. Venus came up and gently put a hand on her shoulder, saying, "Come on, we have work to do. Don't worry, because the ship will be down there soon enough. Say, are you trembling?"

Serenity smiled and said, "That's just a little of the girl I was coming up again."

"Hey, that's okay," responded Venus, "Remember the old saying: the conscience does make comrades of us all."

Serenity shook her head, and said, "After five hundred years, and you still can't get the sayings right!"

They both laughed, but the point was still valid. They could only become closer as they went through this mission.

4


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"_Be sure you're right, and then go ahead._"_ Davy Crockett, commenting on how he kept from getting lost in the wilderness._

By the position of the planet, it was apparent that the northern hemisphere was in its summer cycle. The planet itself was about 25% smaller than Earth, so the gravity would be less, and it would thus give them an edge should they face danger. The planet was seismically active in normal ways, seeing a volcano erupting here, an earthquake there, and other such activity. There were three continents on the planet's surface, and there was a massive lake in the middle of one of them. It was big enough to be a sea, yet it was completely fresh water—very odd for a body of water that size. Mercury theorized that it was because the body of water was so far inland that the mountain ranges around it kept it supplied with fresh water. She then said she would have a team on that right away to see if this was so, and how it could be so large by such sources. It was thus decided that the ship would settle in near the shores of that lake and the exploration would start from there.

The ship entered the atmosphere and the impulse thrusters about the ship kept her stable on descent, considering that the foils underneath were great for getting the ship into orbit, but were not so great for gliding. She skimmed into the water, cutting an impressive wake in the water before settling in and acting like an ocean going vessel. Immediately, Mercury and the science team were analyzing the water, and it was discovered that the water was at a constant 78 degrees Fahrenheit. The different members of the team buzzed back and forth about this, and Mercury called for a probe to descend into the water. The lake itself sat about 700 feet above sea level, and thus there were no paths to the ocean. Had there been, then the lake would have drained to sea level. A thorough scan of the lake before touchdown demonstrated that the lake itself was about 200 feet deep at its deepest point. However, as the probe descended, it discovered that the water got warmer as it went deeper, and became about 100 degrees at its warmest on average. It then discovered that, the deeper it went, the areas of warm seemed to funnel together into streams. It finally discovered something unique. Yes, the lake was supplied by streams up top, but the lake was also supplied by underground sources that were deep enough for the water to be heated. At the vents themselves, the water was about 150 degrees, but immediately cooled when it hit the cold water. As it rose, it met with the other warm sources, reheated, and then was re-cooled by the surface sources.

In addition to that, there was life in the water, and it was fishlike in nature. However, there were large creatures, cetaceous in nature, about the size of the orca on Earth. However, it was colored in a combination of blue, gray, and white, with the white patches on the belly. It was quickly assessed that it was an intelligent creature, as one of them approached the probe as it was surfacing, started to look it over with a seemingly intelligent gaze, and then grabbed it with its mouth, (filled with 88 conically shaped and interlocking teeth.) The view made everyone jump as the sight was put on the big screens throughout the ship for all the crew to see, seeing the probe now had a straight-on view of the inside of its mouth! It let it go, and the probe continued to surface. The creature then followed it up as Mercury commented, "This is amazing to see such a creature in fresh water. That is so rare on Earth. Perhaps this creature developed this way being so isolated from the rest of the water. It almost seems to water what Australia was to the Earth. I must get a chance to study the ocean life later on."

Serenity then said, in a very Usagi-like fashion, "Aw, it's so cute! I wonder if it's just as friendly as what we have on Earth. I would love to play with one!"

"Did you ever consider that this creature might like to eat queens for breakfast," said Luna, "This isn't Earth, you know."

"Luna, you always know how to spoil a girl's fun!" Serenity answered, all pouty.

"That's why you love me so!" Luna said proudly.

However, just before the probe surfaced, the creature surfaced, and it seemed to catch it's breath by blowing through two blowholes set halfway between where Earth whales and land creatures would normally keep their nostrils. This indeed marked them as air breathers, and it was the second significant discovery since they had landed. It spotted the large vessel, watched the probe surface, looked at it, and then the ship, grabbed it with its mouth again, and then swam towards the ship. In about seven minutes, it sat aside the ship after releasing the probe, and was making a series of loud clicks and whistles. Mercury then called for a hovercraft to be readied to go down to this creature. However, Jupiter was quick to remind her of her position, both as a princess and as an admiral, and would not let her go out there unless she had a team of four armed Greenbacks go out with her. Mercury apologized for her zeal, forgetting about such things when it came to her scientific mind, and zeal for discovery, and submitted to the guard.

Once this was done, the five exited the ship and breathed in the beautiful and unspoiled fresh air. However, they all felt exhilaration, feeling a touch dizzy at first, with a slight headache, but then a heightened alertness and energy. Mercury assessed that this had to be due to the richer oxygen atmosphere on this world than what they were used to breathing. There seemed to be the normal plant to animal exchange of gasses, and she was curious to discover why there was such a richer oxygen atmosphere on this world versus Earth. She climbed on board the craft, and it gently descended to the water so as not to startle the creature. The creature swam back a bit, being clearly cautious of the strange visitors to its world, but then approached when it saw that neither the craft, nor the creatures inside it, were acting aggressive. It again assessed the probe and the small craft, then grabbed the probe and popped it over the edge of the craft. It then lingered to examine the new creatures in the craft, trying to make out what they were all about. Mercury remembered her work with Earth animals, removed a glove, and moved away a touch as she reached out to the animal. The guards instantly tensed, but tried to stay calm, knowing what she was trying. They were not going to interfere, but, at the same time, they were ready to blast this thing to kingdom come if it tried to snatch her. The creature pulled away a touch, and Mercury stopped, and the creature displayed more of its intelligence as it began to realize the stranger was not being hostile. Soon, Mercury was stroking the nose of the animal very gently, being careful of its blowholes, and stroking under its chin. It then began to make contented clicking sounds, not unlike the purring of a cat, but much louder. She then started to speak to it in calming tones, and it seemed to be even more content. Then, something interesting happened.

As she was contacting the animal, she slowly began to go into a trance. The Greenbacks began not to like what they saw, but she said, "No, its okay," as she closed her eyes, and a smile overcame her face. She began to feel a euphoric state, as her pleasure receptors were being contacted, and she then heard a childlike voice saying, "Nice…so nice."

She moaned in pleasure as she was hugging herself with her other arm. She then heard, "Nice Mercury…different…new…never had…"

Now she was rubbing the arm of the hand which touched the creature, moaning even more. She then heard, "Good feelings…so tasty!"

Apparently, the creature fed off emotions, and it had never experienced sentient life before. She had to assume that it only had the emotions of its kind, and any others like it, and this was an experience beyond what it had ever had. For certain, it was that for Mercury. Soon, the creature slipped downward, submerged, and then came back up, looking at her. It then began to move backwards, and then began to do bows and breaches. It looked at her again, and then went its way. The hovercraft then returned to the ship, and Mercury returned to the bridge, but almost danced her way there. "It was so wonderful!" she told the others, "It must feed on emotions as well as food, and it gives as it receives!"

She was still hugging and stroking her arms and hips as she said, "Oh, I am so excited to explore this world. There is enough here to keep us busy for decades! I think I shall call the creature 'the Mind Whale,' because of how it links with you!"

Serenity was watching this, and she said, "Ooh, I want to try now!"

"Knowing you, you would probably give it an aneurism," teased Mars, to which Serenity just pouted, knowing she could say something, but she just let it go. Mercury then said, "Well, if you shall excuse me I have to…uh…change…well…take care of some lady things…yeah."

She left with no one knowing what that was all about. She was embarrassed to tell them that she had to make some garment changes.

Later on, the inner scouts met, and Mercury asked for everyone's assistance. She wanted to send each one of them out with two of her scientists, and four Greenbacks. Ceres then said that he would bring four of his best marines with him in his case. Everyone agreed, and hovercrafts were readied for all of them. Soon the hovercrafts were skimming on the water's surface, and they soon found themselves being escorted by a pod of the mind whales. It amazed them that the creatures had the ability to keep up. Serenity, upset that she missed her chance at this, took off a glove and reached out to touch one when no one was looking. One of the creatures saw this and came up to her. She touched its back, and the link was made. Within about five seconds, she heard a childlike voice say, "Energy…happy…play!"

Mercury, in the next craft over, saw this and said, "No! You're not ready for it!"

The whale began to make the happy sounds they heard earlier, so there was no fear, but they were surprised when the creature moved forward quickly and bumped her hand with its dorsal fin. Because she was still in contact with the creature, she instinctively grabbed it, and over she went. She came to, and then quickly grabbed a tight hold of the dorsal fin. "YOUR MAJESTY!" called out the Greenbacks, but the creatures pulled away from the crafts and into the middle of the pod. They all began to click gleefully as they all rubbed up against her legs. They were not crushing them, but they were gentle. They started to do bows and spinning jumps in the water. Serenity was screaming the whole way. At some point, she lost her grip, but one of the whales was quick to get underneath her when she entered the water, and she was being passed from whale to whale. After about five minutes of this, she was deposited back on the craft amidst the gleeful chirps of the whales as they swam beside them. She panted heavily and had a look on her face not unlike that of a cat that had just escaped the water-filled bathtub into which it had fallen. At first, there was an urge to ask if she was okay, but then all the inner scouts could contain no more and burst out in hilarious laughter. Obviously, her majesty was not amused!

The whales followed them up to the beach as the crafts made for solid land, posed in the surf, and then flopped back into the water. When the craft settled on the beach, Mercury made sure to make a thorough examination of her majesty. Everyone was still trying to stifle snickers as she pouted and said, "That was not funny!"

Mercury, in her gentle and consoling way, gently rebuked Serenity, and said, "You should have let me know that was what you wanted. We could have prepared you for that. You should have known better."

"But, they were so pretty, and nothing happen to you," returned Serenity.

"Well, that's not entirely true," admitted Mercury, and then she whispered into her ear what she had to do after. Serenity looked at her amazed, and then turned red as she giggled. Mercury then said, "Can you keep it a secret?"

"As long as you can keep this a secret," answered Mercury. However, Mars then said, "She may, but unfortunately, the recorders that were set up for the exploration caught the whole thing!"

"NO!" exclaimed Serenity and she gave a royal command to have all such actions eradicated. However, Mercury said, "Unfortunately, your husband said that everything we do must be kept for the value of the exploration we do now. I'm afraid that it is not going to happen."

Serenity looked shocked, and then said, "I'll…uh…I override it!"

Venus then looked at her and said, "You really want to make this an act of congress, your majesty?"

Knowing how the kingdom constitution was set up, she knew that, if she disputed it, it could become something far more than needed, and so she was stuck. Jupiter then said, "Besides, isn't it you that always says that she want to remain true to the people, and to be herself? Now, would it be right for her majesty to be two faced like that?"

She never liked when they pulled this royal talk on her, especially when they were playing her conscience. "No," Serenity finally conceded with a sigh, "I suppose you're right. I kind of deserved that."

Venus came up and gave her a little hug, and said, "It's okay. At least they meant you no harm. Besides, you can now say that you were the first to swim with these creatures. If they end up that friendly, you and Mercury may have discovered creatures with which possible colonists can have a symbiosis if they keep their emotions in check."

Serenity smiled and said, "Thank you, Venus; you have always been like a big sister to me!"

"I always consider that a great compliment," Venus answered.

Ceres then looked around and said, "Well, are we ready to go? We didn't come over eight light years just to look at the place!"

They all laughed and prepared to head out to their various adventures.

While all this was going on, another Gnarl vessel approached the solar system, hoping to do some more thorough exploration. However, this time, they were not unseen. The ship was not cautious, and approached too near Pluto, or near enough to where certain alarms were sounded within the military instillation on the planetoid. That was immediately transferred to the two CT cruisers on picket duty at that time. They cloaked and went to where the data told them to go. While all this was going on, Princess Pluto was making her way to the ready room where she would be briefed on what was going on. She then contacted the other outer scouts and King Endymion. Once they were conference called in, they transmitted in encoded transmissions to the two cruisers tracking the situation. The king then said, "What's going on?"

"We may have an unexpected intruder, your majesty," explained Pluto.

With that, images were coming in from the cruisers. What they saw what they had to assume was a craft of some sort, because it indeed had a look of something that had been built by an intelligent species of creature. It was silver in color, about the size of a heavy cruiser, in the shape of a long tube with a slight waviness to it. As soon as that was seen, a command was sent for some fighters to come out and make a pass. They wanted to assess if this was friend or foe, and did not want to give an indication of hostility by sending something that could not threaten a vessel of such a size, and also knowing that the cruisers sat at the ready if it got ugly. It so happened that the Princess Usagi and the Amazoness Quartet were the only ones available and near enough to react, so they went out. Princess Pluto then said to them as they passed by that location, "Use all peaceful hailing frequencies with all known forms of communication and speech. The computer will put together many different combinations until we can find one that links with them. Remember: we have not established their intent, or whether or not they are friend or foe, so be casual and maintain formation."

Usagi acknowledged and they headed off towards that ship.

The five fighters approached the vessel, and they indeed were the pride of stealth squadron. They were the newest of the F-54 stealth space fighters. They had a sleek arrowhead design, and had a twin tail and wing configuration that allowed for atmospheric flight if needed. They also had a single warp engine underneath and an impulse engine aft. When in an atmosphere, the warp engine allowed for full VSTOL capabilities. Their design was to ensure no detection when approaching a fight, and to deflect any craft's ability to lock onto them. They approached in a "V" formation, and sent out the frequencies before they approached, knowing that they would not be detected before they were seen. Sailor Pallus then said, "PallaPalla doesn't like this. PallaPalla has a bad feeling."

"Will you relax!" said Sailor Juno, "Everything gives you a bad feeling."

"Still, her instincts are good about things, so don't discount them," said Sailor Ceres.

"CreCre's right," said Sailor Vesta, "We don't know what they intend."

"Then we all need to cut the chatter and stay sharp," said Usagi.

"Sorry, your highness," said CreCre, "brother would never tolerate it."

"Speaking of which, how is he?" asked JunJun, "It such an amazing thing how he turned out to be our brother, and we all really sisters."

"Yeah," said Usagi, "You never really have shared that story with me."

"Maybe on the way back," said VesVes, "Right now, let's tend to business."

They soon had the unknown vessel in sight, and they were now silent and on their toes.

Meanwhile, on the Gnarl Craft, the communications officer said, "Sir, we have five small craft approaching us. It seems they are trying to hail us."

The captain was immediately alert, and a visual was brought up on his main viewing screen. He started to look around, all nervous, not sure how to react. His first officer said, "Sir, we've been detected. Should we answer hail? They seem to have found a way to communicate."

"We were not supposed to be detected at all!" he snapped in panic, "We cannot act like we have a peaceful intent, because that would spoil everything."

"Would it not be better subterfuge?" asked the first officer, "I mean, they could think us friends, and then, once they lower their guard, her majesty can call for us to strike."

"No, that's not what she ordered," he said, glaring at his first officer, "I do not want to face her if we botch this! Scramble some fighters!"

General quarters were sounded, the vessel was brought to yellow alert, (where weapons would be readied, but not in a full combat mode, without deflectors raised.) However, that was not unnoticed.

Right away, the sensors on both the cruisers and the fighters began to sound the alarm of weapons arming. "This isn't good!" said PallaPalla, "They want to fight."

"Maybe not," said Usagi, "It may just be an act of caution. We would have done the same."

Yet, as an answer to this, ten sphere shaped craft came out of the alien vessel and approached them rapidly, and their sensors were showing growing balls of energy growing on each side of the spheres. "_Now_ we know they want to fight!" shouted Usagi, "Raise shields! Counterattack pattern echo…GO!"

The fighters scattered and shaped into the ordered pattern to intercept the fighters. Endymion, knowing that his daughter was out there, also understood that, though all this may have been a misunderstanding, he could not take that chance. "Blow that thing out of the sky!" he shouted, and the two cruisers came out of cloak, at full red alert, shields up and weapons armed. On the Gnarl ship, warning sirens were sounding, they being completely caught off guard by the appearance of the cruisers. Shields went up, but they were not to get the first volley as they were readying their weapons into a full combat configuration. In a flash, photon torpedoes were flying at the vessel and giving it a good shaking. Even though it had full deflector shields, this did not mean that the vessel was not subject to being shaken about by the impact. The Gnarl on board were being knocked off their feet if they were not secured in their seats as the first officer said, "They pack quite a punch."

"SHUT UP AND RETURN FIRE, YOU FOOL!" screamed the captain in reply, "FIRE EVERYTHING!"

The Gnarl vessel came alive with light as its weapons opened up. White glowing balls with red tails looking like little comets were coming from the Gnarl batteries, and they were giving the CT cruisers a rattling. "How are you holding?"

"She's shaking us, but all is well for now!" they said, "Interesting weapons they have."

"Analyzing that now," said Princess Neptune as she tracked the battle.

Meanwhile, the five were facing the ten in a hard dogfight. PallaPalla screamed, "PallaPalla have two on her tail! PallaPalla can't shake them!"

She swayed back and forth as they fired similar weapons that the mother craft used. JunJun said, "I'm with you! Do the pick and roll!"

PallaPalla headed right for JunJun, and suddenly shot up. Before one of the fighters could react, JunJun's twin rail guns opened up. They hit so close, and hit so rapidly that it ripped through the shields, and then through the enemy fighter. It exploded in a fireball and then faded just as quickly as debris went everywhere. The other fighter dodged this, trying to regain its faculties, when the other half of the pick and roll hit, and PallaPalla dropped behind him. "Now PallaPalla has a turn!" she said angrily as she opened up and blew him to bits. "Whee!" she said, "PallaPalla make pretty fireball!"

JunJun just shook her head as she went to join the others.

The other three were now interweaving with one another, making themselves a hard target, and interweaving with the enemy as they exchanged fire. Because they had been together for so long, they all knew well how each other thought, and they were prepared for a moment like this. As the enemy fighters readied for another pass, Pallus and Juno hit from the flank, each one popping three more between them. The remaining five scattered, but now the princess and her escorts now reformed as Usagi said, "Attack pattern zulu…GO!"

The five then bunched up and headed for the approaching squadron. As they neared, the bunch suddenly spread in a line, and then a crescent, the points facing forward. The enemy, who had prepared to meet the tight pack, was now in disarray as they tried to adjust to the new formation. This caused two of them to collide. Because of their shields, they did not explode, but they began to spiral out of their group. As the crescent approached, they got around the enemy and opened up and closed the horns, the two out of control fighters being the first to be targeted. Within moments, there was nothing left. The five then slowed and reformed, with Usagi saying, "Prepare for strafing runs once they have the enemy ship's shields down."

The two CT cruisers were hitting them with the torpedoes, hitting them with the particle accelerators on broadsides when they turned. The weapons on the enemy ship, however, were hitting hard, and one of the vessels said, "Shields down to 55%. I don't know how much more we can take."

"Just keep fighting," said Endymion, "How are they doing?"

The other cruiser said, "We detect their shields weakening. Another torpedo pass and we may be able to get them down."

The two cruisers reformed and set up to hit them with enfilading fire. As they did, they were being hit hard. Cruiser one said, "Shields now 30%," and cruiser two said, "Shields at 64%."

However, the chance came when the Gnarl ship suddenly had a torpedo rip all the way through the hull. On that ship, the call was made, "Shields breached! We're nothing more than a practice target!"

"Keep fighting, but we cannot afford capture!" said the captain, with the rest of the bridge crew knowing what that meant. The captain then said, "If it gets bad enough, I press the button."

Once the shields came down, the fighters were on them like a swarm of hornets. The CT cruisers now started to hammer the alien vessel, and suddenly, that ship's batteries stopped. Once this was detected, the fighters pulled back and a command was given to demand surrender and to take on boarders. As this was happening, all ships' sensors detected a swift increase in energy from the rear of the ship. "EMERGENCY WARP!" was shouted, and all the ships warped to the orbit of Saturn before they stopped. The enemy ship then exploded and faded out as the debris field scattered. "What happened?" shouted the king, to which one of the captains said, "We detected the power surge in their engine room area, or what had to be, which only could have been one of two things: either they had a core breach, or they self destructed. If it's the latter, then they wanted to avoid capture."

"We have plenty of data here," said Uranus, "That's for intel to deal with: that's our department."

"Get me a report as soon as you can," stated Endymion, and Saturn stated, "Fear not, your majesty, they may have said more about themselves than for which they cared."

"Shall we tell the queen?" asked Pluto.

After a moment's silence, the king said, "Not yet: this was just one incident, and we have enough here to handle things if it gets bad. If it does, we shall recall them. I don't want to worry her, and besides, you know what happens when she panics."

They all rolled their eyes, knowing what that meant. She normally had a level head, but if it went bad enough, either she was focused like a laser and knew just what to do, or she was like the man who jumped on his horse and rode off madly in all directions. "We'll have that data to you soon, for now, it is our top priority," responded Pluto, "Saturn, we'll meet on Titan and go over this. We may have to put in some spy work on this one."

6


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"_We came in peace for all mankind."_ _Buzz Aldran as he stood on the Moon._

As they stood there, Ceres then said, "Hold on, your Majesty," and pulled out his camera. He then said, "You were the first one on the sand, and have not moved. We have been so excited about things that we have not realized that a historic moment has taken place. You, Queen Serenity, were the first person to physically set foot on a world outside of our solar system. Please, raise your foot, your Majesty."

She did so, and he photographed it, saying, "Here, the people of the Sol system first set foot on an alien world, hoping to spread the peace of the Millennium Kingdom. We came in peace for all sentient creatures of the universe."

She set her foot back down, and everyone took an instinctive moment of reflection over what was just said. They were indeed the first people to set foot on another world outside their system, and it indeed needed to be remembered. At this Venus called for one of the crafts to go back to the ship and return with the system flag to mark the area in which this happened. It was then set on the first part of solid soil off the beach, and secured to withstand the elements until a more permanent marker could be placed. With that, they split up into teams: Mercury would take the oceans, Venus would take the tropical lands, Ceres would take the artic zones, Jupiter would take the northern temperate zones, and Mars would take the southern temperate zones. Queen Serenity would stay on the ship until it was determined that all was safe, and then she would be able to visit each one. She did indeed want to go with the others, but her safety was indeed priority, and it was just one of those things she had come to accept over the centuries as the nature of her being. Once this was done, they all went to get the gear that would be suited to the environments that they would be going into, and then went their ways.

Back on Titian, A meeting was taking place. The outer princesses—acting in the capacity of the scouts at that point—were meeting with the king, and going over the visuals of the fight from both the perspectives of the cruisers and the fighters. Indeed, by all they had, the intent of the strangers was not peaceful. "Are you certain they were not just scared, and acting to defend themselves?"

"Not by what is seen here," said Pluto, "As soon as hails hit them, they immediately hit yellow alert conditions and immediately launched what they thought would be enough fighters to soundly defeat ours. They underestimated Small Lady and her escorts."

"That's my girl," said Endymion, "She is serious about being the best."

"Notice what happens when the cruisers came out of cloak," said Uranus, "They immediately went to red alert conditions and opened up without hesitation. I don't think they wanted to be caught."

"Then what is worse is the fact that they were here at all," said Neptune.

"They mean violence, no question," said Saturn in a monotone voice.

"Are you having a vision?" asked Endymion.

"It is not quite a vision, but a bit more than an epiphany," responded Saturn.

"Then what are you getting," asked Pluto.

"There is a sense of conquest all over them," answered Saturn, "And, look, there on the underside of that ship."

They froze the frame when they took it back to where they first had it on camera, and they zoomed in on the image. They spotted two openings on the bottom that looked like torpedo openings, but in fact were too small for that. Uranus said, "I am not sure, but my guess is that those are probe launchers. They look similar to our own, and they are about the right structure for something like that. They look like they were trying to find out some information."

"Odd that they would bring out one of their fighting ships for that purpose," said Michiru, "It makes me wonder if they were just being over cautious, or if they have been here before and we did not notice."

Pluto thought, and she said, "I am going to have the computer go over the records and see if there was something detected or reported as out of the ordinary in the system, no matter how small it seemed between the times of the launch of the Artemis and now. There may be something."

They headed off this time in larger crafts that were designed to cover great distances in a short time, and were all terrain. They also had smaller vehicles on them that would allow them to go in areas that the larger carrier could not. They were also good for ocean travel, which suited Mercury's needs well. She headed out to the shores of the continent they had been on, and scanned to the continental shelf. There was not much different there than what one would find in the oceans on Earth, except they just had different colors and appearances. The coral was about the same, and the fishlike life was arrayed in beautiful colors and hues, as well as in interesting shapes and sizes. She saw surface swimmers and bottom dwellers, and everything in between. There were interesting crustaceans and mollusks, and some cephalopod kinds of creatures. If she had time, she might have took the time to watch the interactions of the animals, see who was predator and prey, and other various things. However, she was just content on filming the life there and then analyzing it later. Once vast members of her science team could get there, they could do the detailed work. If this was to be a planet for colonization, they had to learn as much as they could about the flora and fauna before letting people come. This would help avoid tragedies by misadventure for those who would be willing to brave the wilds of a new world. Once she was at the continental shelf, they headed out to deeper waters.

The life out there seemed to be spread out sparsely, but what they did find was more massive than what dwelt nearer to the land. Again, the life seemed similar to Earth, with cetaceous creatures, squalis type of fish, predatory in nature, large schools of fish like what may have been caught or eaten on Earth, and sizeable, but they would have to be studied to see if they would even be fit for consumption. Anyone colonizing here would have to be able to live off that planet's resources, and that would have to be studied over the months and maybe even years to come. The only difference out there was that the creatures were shaped and colored unique to their own world. Then the sonar went off, and Mercury went over to see what was going on. "Your Highness, we are tracking a large creature that has began to follow our craft. It is about 40 feet in length, and by the shape here on the sonar, it looks like some kind of cephalopod."

She watched the screen, and it seemed to be moving fast. It was also partly underneath them, but now was moving up. Mercury was starting to get uneasy about things, and she then said, "Put it on the viewer."

When it came on, all they could see was a fan of 12 tentacles getting closer, and a large beak! Suddenly, the large tentacles of the reddish creature slammed down on the craft and stuck. The ship rocked to the left and knocked everyone off their feet. There were yells and screams as confusion was the order of the day. The craft itself had a large transparent steel dome on top as it was rigged for submergence. The pilot fought and scraped his way back to the helm and was able to seal off the ship in case the creature got funny. It indeed looked like an earth squid, but its head was more rounded, and it had 12 tentacles all the same length. The creature's massive eyes saw what was on the inside, and just like Earth cephalopods, the creature was both intelligent and curious. It started to tilt the craft back and forth. It was interested in what was inside, and wanted to get at them. First, it tried its beak, but when it found it impossible to crack it that way, it started to rotate the craft to see if there was an opening of some kind. Inside, everyone was trying to take the best shelter that they could to try to avoid getting hit by one of the loose pieces of gear that was flying around. When the creature could not get in that way, it started to try to go under with the craft. However, because of the airtight situation and mass of the craft, it was having a hard time getting underwater. That steadied things enough for people to get out from under cover and assess what to do. "Your Highness, if he takes us under and goes too deep..." said one of the crew, "well, I don't know to what depth this ship could go and be able to withstand the pressure."

Mercury then took a position facing a door, and she was prepared to hit it with her Sub Zero attack to both push it out and seal it with frozen water if it managed to get one open. The greenbacks took position beside her to blast the thing in case the cold did not work.

At that point, nature came to the rescue. Three large creatures about 35 feet in length that looked like what Earth would call sharks came out of nowhere and started to attack the creature. They were vicious, tearing it apart and devouring it with relish. Before long, what was left of the creature began to sink in the water, but Mercury's sense of discovery and adventure kept her excited, and she said, "Quickly, submerge and track the carcass. It might attract other life to study! I have to think every little feeder is going to want some of this."

Amazed that she was not fazed by what seemed like a near disaster, stared only for a moment, and then manned their stations. There would be time to clean up the mess later. The three shark-like creatures were still taking the occasional swipe at the thing, but also swam around the craft. Indeed, a plethora of creatures came to get a part of the massive thing, but the thee that had seemingly rescued them swam around the craft, gently rubbing it with their snouts as if they were sniffing it, and examining the contents. Oddly enough, for creatures like that, they were not being aggressive. They then swam away, and Mercury said, "Okay, take us up and let's clean up. We have two other oceans to examine!"

"With all due respect, your Highness," said the head security man, "you never cease to amaze us."

She smiled at the compliment, genuinely embarrassed at it, and she said, "Thank you for your kindness. Now, let's see what else is out there."

On the same continent where they started were some of the tropical zones, and Venus and Artemis headed out to check things out. Because it was indeed warm, they had the craft sealed and air conditioned. They went as far as they could, and then they reached dense jungle. "Your Highness," said the head of the science crew, "The jungle is too dense for the smaller craft to negotiate. We could use the lasers to cut a path."

"Bring the hand laser cutters," said Venus, "We'll go on foot."

Everyone looked at her oddly. She then said, "The best way to see it is to get out there and see it. You know the old saying—nothing ventured, nothing learned."

Artemis sighed, but he said, "Um…close enough," and they all geared up to go out.

Everyone was wearing clothing appropriate for the conditions, but Venus' outfit, being a senshi outfit, was well designed for such climates. The only thing she added was a pith helmet with mosquito netting for some of the insects of the planet. They also had special sonic devices that were also designed to keep away insects in case they carried diseases that were unknown to Earth immune systems. That would have been disastrous. The laser cutters could cut away large swaths of plant life out of the jungle before them, making clear passage as they went. While they went, there were indeed many creatures that looked fairly different from Earth species, but also looked familiar as well. There were several mammal-like creatures moving around, as well as simian-like, although they did not have humanoid looking faces as such. They had bigger eyes and longer noses, but the way they moved and behaved were like Earth monkeys. There were also avian-like animals that indeed flew, very colorful and beautiful, but unlike anything they had seen back home. Their calls and songs were just as unique as the creatures themselves. The fauna also would not be all too unfamiliar to anything that one would see on Earth, very tropical and palm tree looking in construction. At that, one of the scientists said with the scanner in her hand, "Your Highness, there seems to be a group of about 29 animals ahead of us, about man-sized."

Venus remembered the things that Mercury had taught her about this kind of thing, and she said, "Okay stop, and move slowly. If they are aggressive, we don't want to give them a reason."

They stopped cutting through the plants at that point and just moved quietly towards a clearing where these creatures were. When they moved away a couple of the palm leaves, and they saw a group of creatures that looked apelike, but they were slender, with a sloth-like appearance, with long arms and legs. They seemed to be mammals, as they saw some of what they had to assume were females suckling their young. They were not behaving too dissimilar to apes, and they seemed peaceful enough. However, the biggest one that looked like one of the males stuck his nose into the air and started to sniff around a bit. Venus just froze as did the others, because they did not want the creatures to be spooked and charge them. Finally, he looked right into the eyes of Venus, and she then looked away, remembering that staring was considered an act of aggression by many animals. He then got up and began to come over in an apelike manner. He came halfway across and stopped, taking time to stare some more. However, one of the young ones was not so cautious. It ambled up and started to pull away the plants around Venus. It started to examine her, and then began to sniff at her legs. The cold nose caused her to fight back a giggle. She could not recoil for risking startling the young creature, and possibly causing the creature's mother to attack. Once it was done with that, it climbed up her nimbly and perched on her shoulder, sniffing some more. It then got curious about her hair, and lifted up the netting, sniffing it and getting close to her scalp. The next thing you knew, it was trying to groom her, and the large male sat down, but did not stop its vigil. Another, smaller adult moved up, and gave a few high pitched whoop calls, and the young one stopped and looked over. It then gleefully jumped off and climbed up to the shoulder of the adult. Once the creatures thought the newcomers safe, they all started to approach and examine them. They were ecstatic about the encounter, but they still kept it cautious to be careful not to spook the creatures and cause a disaster.

After spending some time with the creatures, they decided it was time to move on, but as they went, the troop followed them, still curious about their new acquaintances. Soon, they were at a swampy area, and they were taking their time. They had a spot where one of the greenbacks took a couple of steps and sank to his knees. He stopped, realizing he was in quicksand, laughing about how he had gotten stuck, and then reaching back as some of the others began to lean him back to help extract him. However, some of the creatures ambled across the quagmire as if it was solid ground, and they realized at that point that the creatures had wide enough feet to negotiate the mud. They saw what the greenbacks were trying to do, and they helped to extract him. As they went further, all the creatures suddenly came to a screeching halt, and began to pull back some of the crew. Artemis saw that, and said, "Venus, usually reading what the animals do is a good indication on how to avoid danger."

As she kept walking forward, she looked back and said, "What kind of…YIPE!"

Artemis watched as the others turned to see what the sound was all about, and they were shocked to see the princess gone! All the creatures now were whooping and calling, pounding the ground, ambling back into the wood line. Venus landed in what looked like water, but smelled like a sewer, as she realized that she was also sitting on decomposing animal parts. "EEEEWWWWWW!" she screamed, "THIS IS SO GROSS!"

Everyone heard the muffled exclamations, and Artemis came up to where it came from, but made sure to sniff it out, lest he get too close and cause what happened to her to happen to him. She began to look around at the smelly surroundings, and saw how green and dimmed things were. She also noticed the pongee sticklike spikes coming out of the green walls, and how the top was closed. She then shouted, "Um, can someone get me out of here?"

Immediately, the greenbacks went over to where Artemis stood, and started using the lasers to cut around the dirt of the area where the top seemed to be, and the revealed what looked like a giant pitcher plant! They estimated how high the thing was versus her height, and sheered off the top of the plant. They then lowered a cord to her and carefully pulled her out. Once out, there was a collective sigh of relief, and then Venus suddenly said, "My skin feels itchy."

At once, the science team knew what was going on, and they knew that she was now covered with the plant's digestive acid, and they knew it would be stronger considering its size. However, the creatures came out, smelled her, looked alarmed, and then snatched her up. Everyone thought she was in danger again, but the other creatures snatched them up, including Artemis, and started to swing swiftly through the trees. "MINAKO!" called a now frightened Artemis, who was terrified by the rapid movement, and he instinctively called her by her old name. They then were rushed to what looked like a small lake, but it had a few light steamy wisps coming off the surface. When they got there, the creature that was holding Venus dropped down, and then hucked her into the water. She flew with a scream and landed with a loud splash. It then began to swoosh its own hands in the water. Fortunately, the water was like one of the natural hot baths of Japan, so she wasn't burned, but she did flail around a bit, trying to gain herself. When she stood up, she was neck deep in the water, and she saw everyone trying to stifle their laughs. "What's so funny," she said with a pout, and then everyone broke out into laughter. She, seeing the creature, took the hint and started to wash herself. It felt like a good mineral bath, and it took off a layer of skin because of the acid, but something else happened. As she bathed, her uniform started to float to the surface in bits, and she now looked like she was very content to stay in the water. "Your Highness," one called out, "Why won't you come out?"

"Not until every male leaves this place!" she snapped, and they saw the bits of her clothes drifting to the edge of the water. They all left, and one of the female greenbacks went to fetch her spare clothes.

Back on Titan, they were waiting for some results, and they suddenly came across a report from the Mars Observatory, and they noted at that time two odd streaks in the sky which were written off as meteors. However, the computer showed that nothing burned up in those streaks, and Pluto then said, "I'll lay you ten schillings to the pound that those were probes. They've been here before!"

"Perhaps they saw the ships and became cautious?" said Neptune.

"It's more likely that they saw them, and came with a battle cruiser just in case," said Uranus, "We have to assume that the ALF ship was not here to be nice."

"We're going to have to confirm that," said Saturn.

"That means we have work to do," said Pluto, "Your Majesty, its time for the outer scouts to go to work."

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	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"... _but for my own sake I do not regret this journey, which has shown that Englishmen can endure hardships, help one another, and meet death with as great a fortitude as ever in the past. We took risks, we knew we took them; things have come out against us, and therefore we have no cause for complaint, but bow to the will of providence, determined still to do our best to the last" Robert F. Scott_

Jupiter arrived at the temperate zones, and it was a bit chillier than she expected. Her long cloak was found and wrapped around her. Her personal Greenbacks were making sure she did not snag on anything as she went. The craft sat on the edge of a massive forest. Indeed, if one were to look up the definition of "virgin forest" in the dictionary, it would be certain that pictures of this sight would be the images by which the word would be defined. It was what we would call a pine forest, with a mix of deciduous trees in the mix. However, the trees themselves towered over them intimidatingly, the trunks themselves being so massive that one could have driven a mid-size car through it with ease. It was into this natural city of wooden skyscrapers that the party entered. Standing right next to the trees, one gained a sense of his own smallness as he looked up at the seemingly endless trunk. They seemed to go on forever, and seemed to give no indication to their tops save for the green carpet they formed which darkened the forest floor, which was pockmarked with beams of light that were allowed to break through the green barrier. The effect was an odd mix of dark and enigmatic and serene peacefulness as the beams of light gave the whole scene a cathedral effect to the area. Indeed, because of the canopy, any plant life that could not reach up high enough had no chance to grow as massive. This had the result of several short trees, and no scrub growth. This allowed for ease of passage through the seemingly limitless forest before them, and also allowed for a thriving ecosystem to function within its nurturing boughs. Jupiter took note of this, and she made sure to state in her journal that, if the area was ever lumbered, it had to be done so that these same conditions were maintained. It could be used, but centuries of lessons on Earth that mankind had learned taught him how to lumber and manage forests wisely. It was so engrossing that they almost forgot to keep vigil. It was beautiful, but also an unknown. There was no telling what they may find within the forest as it stood.

Jupiter was enjoying the fresh pine scent that permeated the location. Indeed, it was a smell that one could not avoid if they tried. They made their way slowly, but not so slow as to be too cautious. If there was a chance to encounter docile animal life, they did not want to give off the effect of acting like a predator. Yet, as they made their way along, they were encountering some of the smaller animal life, and they were not too shy about approaching the party. There were creatures that looked partially unusual to the eyes, but had slightly different structures to their bodies, and different color schemes. One thing that caught their attention was a kind of what had to be described as a large flying squirrel. However, the fur was all black, and it was about the size of a skunk. It surprised one of the guards as one landed on his shoulder. Instinct made the sailors reach for their weapons, but they all calmed down when it was seen that it was not going to attack him. It then began to sniff him a bit, and then began to clean his hair, sniff in his ear, and even gave a few licks in there. He had all he could do to keep from laughing. It was indeed a rodent-like creature, and looked like a giant squirrel. However, when it lifted its tail, it was then they saw what looked like scent packs, and they said, "Just let it do what it wants, because I think you wouldn't want to get it riled!"

It finally hopped off and went about to explore everything about the new creatures to its world. While that was going on, the avian creatures started to take an interest in the party. They looked like tropical parrots, but their colors were more akin to the forest. They could only assume that these creatures had adapted to their environment to hide from predators. They were from the size of budgies to macaws. This also begged the question: were there raptors on this world? Some of the budgie-sized birds landed on Jupiter and sang their beautiful songs. It was then that she noticed that the feathers were not like what we would expect. They had the structure, but while the main part of the feather was as we would recognize it, on the ends it became downy, and gave the appearance of fur more than feathers. A larger one landed on Jupiter, and it seemed very affectionate. He saw the trail mix upon which she snacked and helped himself to it without so much as an offer to it. She was now afraid because she was not sure if the bird, (if that was what it could be called,) had a metabolism that could handle earth foods. Seeing the concern in her face, one of the medical team came up and did a scan with his mini-MRI device, and he said, "Well, there are no ill effects, and it seems like it is digesting things well, and it does not seem to be poisonous to it, so I guess it's okay."

It cocked its head a couple of times, and it said, "I guess it's okay!"

"It's a mimic too!" she said, happily surprised.

"It's a mimic too!" it said back, and in her voice.

Everyone looked amazed at this, and they wondered how intelligent the creature was.

As they went, they were amazed at the bovine-like creatures they encountered that did not look to dissimilar to elks and caribou on Earth. They were contently grazing on the patches of grass in the spots were the light was allowed to shine and permit such to grow. They too were docile, not knowing to be afraid of creatures that they had never seen. Yet, at that point, Jupiter felt a harsh pinch on hear earlobe as the mimic creature bit onto it. It was not hard enough to draw blood, but it was enough to get her attention. It then flew to sparse underbrush that did grow there, and Jupiter began figure it out. On Earth, birds like that would bite to warn comrades of impending danger. She took the hint and headed for the underbrush herself. The others took the hint and hid. The creatures around were sensing the stress off their visitors and started to spook a bit. It was just as the last of them hid was when it happened. A bunch of gray catlike creatures about the size of wolves came out and started to go after the herd. Indeed, though they seemed feline, they attacked in a pack as if they were wolves, and the herd started to scatter. As they did, they almost trampled those that were hiding, but they were able to avoid them. It was one of the slower ones in the back that was not as fortunate. They all swarmed over the poor creature as if they were fire ants on a cube of sugar. Needless to say, it was quick for the animal, but not pretty. Jupiter felt sad for the creature, but she also knew that this was such as it was for nature, and she had to let it go. However they were wondering how long they had to hide.

As if it were an answer to the question, one of the creatures started to sniff the air, and it went to a place where some were hiding along with about eight other curious companions. They started to sniff, and then one pounced on one hapless sailor and had him pinned to the ground. However, none of the others attacked, but they began to sniff him over. Because the scent was different to them compared to anything else they sniffed, they seemed to be trying to determine if they were food. Suddenly, the creature started to purr, and curled up on his chest. Another was rubbing on another's leg, and she reached down and stroked it, causing it to purr louder. They could not understand what was going on. They would have to find out another time why they would not attack, and instead acted quite affectionate towards them. As they emerged, however, one of them caught sight of the mimic creature and looked like it was getting ready to pounce. Yet, Jupiter spotted this and used a one finger Shockwave to knock it out. All the catlike creatures jerked in surprise and then began to back off them all, but once it was quiet, they calmed and approached again. By then the science team began to observe, and they began to analyze the creatures. They then realized after some data came through that, for some reason, the pheromones that humans created were exactly the same that they made, and that caused them not to attack. Jupiter looked amazed at the fact that there was still so much more to learn.

As they went, the mimic was still on her shoulder, and she wondered why it did not fly away. As they went, they then came along a spot in the forest where the canopy seemed to open up for about one thousand yards down and about one hundred yards wide. However, instead of there being an abundance of grass and sod, it was barren and sandy. Also occupying the area were deciduous trees that were about 800 feet tall, and all the foliage seemed to rest on top of the trees as the branches seemed to grow straight up, spreading out only slightly. The trunks were thinner than the other trees, and they all sat in a bowl shaped area about 40 yards wide. One of the science team came across one of the leaves that was old and dried up, and it was huge, it was about a foot in width, and about a meter long. As the scanned it, they began to realize that there was something odd about it. The further along they went, they realized that the leaf had been once covered with a highly sticky substance. As they pondered what that was about, they got the answer in a way they did not want.

One of the science team started to enter the bowl to go and study the tree when suddenly the boughs of the tree wilted down to just greater than the width of the bowl and about 50 feet above their heads. It was then the leaves started to drop. They had one thing about them, and that as the massive leaves began to fall, they all had their center vein blood red and pulsing. It almost seemed like a living creature, but gave the sense of something that would make your skin crawl just to think about it touching you. Once the other scientists realized the nature of the leaves, they called back everyone, "RUN FOR IT, AND STAY OUT OF THE BOWLS!"

For the one in the middle, however, she was not so fortunate. A leaf made contact with her and immediately wrapped around her, forming to her body. She let out a blood curdling scream as two more hit her and did the same thing. She screamed, "IT HURTS, THEY'RE…THEY'RE…UGH…tight!"

It was evident that it was constricting the life out of her, and they had to act before she was encased. Jupiter had the answer, however, as she yelled, "SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

The blast wave of the attack created a stiff enough breeze to bend back the boughs and blow the remaining leaves away. However, the ground in the bowl began to undulate and seemed to be moving her towards the base of the trunk. As they looked they now realized that they had never taken a good look at the base of the tree. It was surrounded by dead leaves that looked like they once encased something. The Greenbacks, however, were not about to let this happen. Because the tree was now devoid of leaves, they charged into the bowl, and pulled her out, being careful not to touch the leaves themselves. Once they had her out, the medical team went to work. She could barely breathe now because of the three leaves on her, but they began to use their surgical tools to cut them off as best they could without harming her, and doing so as to kill the constricting effect. As they cut, and much to their amazement, the leaves began to bleed! Analysis showed well that the substance was so sticky that, to get it off, they had to cut away the layers of cloth to which it stuck, and one layer of skin where she was bare. There was no time for anesthetics, so she had to endure the pain. As she began to regain air, she was now crying, too hurt and confused to scream anymore. They now realized that the blood colored substance was the tree's sap, and it indeed seemed to consist of blood, and the stickiness was not to different than platelets found in human flesh—one of the stickiest substances known to man. They patched her up as best that they could, and it was decided that this was enough exploration for one day. They would leave, and take her back to the ship, and treat her there. It was a harsh reminder to Jupiter that exploration was not necessarily something of glamor, but was something wrought with danger. She only hoped that her husband was faring better.

1


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"_North, to Alaska, we're gonna mush, the rush is on." Johnny Horton._

The artic zones were fairly uniform, and it seemed that, by the age and structure of some of the ice in the glaciers, the area had not had a thaw for some time. After making some analysis to the sky, it was then that they realized that the planet only tilted about two degrees off its axis, thus making the days fairly uniform throughout the year. Indeed there were seasons, as was evidenced by the northernmost edges of the temperate zones when they passed them, those areas being marked by where the changes in season marked the zones to where the ice extended in this world's winter period. By the looks of things, this world was heading into its summer solstice. Before they set down, they took high to the sky to scan the area from there to the pole for life, because they wanted to study the fauna, (and flora if there was any,) of that area. Once this was done, Ceres called for them to find an area of the continent covered with ice, but next to the ocean, because he felt that this would give the most chance for an area teeming with life to study.

The craft landed on an open beach that was not covered with ice, and the team of Marines assigned to the task began to scan the area for any kinds of hostile life or mud flats that might suck some of them under. Once this was done, Ceres and the Marines, along with members of the science division assigned to the Marines, (wearing the same uniform, but having their hats and trim marked in the light blue of the science division,) debarked to explore. The temperature outside the craft marked things to be about -20 degrees Celsius, and thus, very cold. They all donned their artic gear and debarked onto the beach. The beach itself was barren of any kind of plant life, marked by several boulders sticking out of the leather brown sand, but the tide did seem to be going out, so if there were any tidal pools that marked the newly exposed rocks, they would be ripe for study. One of the craft, and a small team of the blue trimmed scientists, sealed a craft and rolled into the water. As it submerged, they found quite a different view than what was to the surface. This was an area teeming with life, as the water temperature was about 4 degrees Celsius, which was conducive to life on Earth in waters of those temperatures. The life just off shore was different than what Mercury had found in the open seas. Here, the kinds of, well, what could be best described as fish, were different, and were quite adept in living in their environment. This also included what could be described as corals, sponges, and algae that were not too dissimilar to what one would see on Earth. In fact, as data from the other areas were pouring in to Mercury as she returned to the UES Artemis, Mercury had to conclude that life on other worlds would ultimately adapt in ways that would create creatures that would have structures and abilities like those on Earth. However, what those creatures would come from would be different than on Earth, but not too much. They had already seen this, and they were to see more of it.

As the craft made its way along, they saw different kinds of crustaceans and mollusks that were unique in appearance, but familiar enough to identify them by things they already knew. They took only a few samples of those animals and algae so as not to disrupt things too badly, but allow for them to analyze if they were edible or useful. If this world were ever to be colonized, such data was needed. They also encountered cephalopod-like creatures not to dissimilar to what Mercury had already encountered, but they were also much smaller, but no less aggressive. About seven clung to the clear, transparent steel encasing, biting at it with their beaks, but gaining no headway. Along with this they saw blue and gray auk-like creatures diving into the water and snatching the fish as they went. Every creature also looked like they were designed for the cold waters in which they lived, with the auk-like creatures looking like they carried a layer of fat on them. However, as they went, suddenly, the water began to splash and churn above them, putting them into a state of alert, but they calmed down when they saw what was causing the raucous. Into the water swam what looked like a cross between an elephant seal and…well…an elephant. Their skin was not unlike a pachyderm's skin, but with a layer of blubber, ears like an elephant but smaller, but with pinniped limbs. However, their noses were not dissimilar to an elephant's, and they were prehensile. As they entered, the squid-like creatures came out of everywhere and started to attack the new invaders. However, the skin of the animals was too thick to cause cuts of any significant damage. In fact, the roadmap of scars on the animals showed a history of dealing with what had to be an annoyance for them. Yet, as they watched, there seemed to be a method to the madness, as the animals proved very adept at use of their trunks. They were quickly snatching the squid-like creatures off one another and gorging themselves on them with the speed of a rattlesnake! A few observed the ones clinging to the strange transparent boulder now invading their waters, and the Marines watched in amazement as they observed the creatures being snatched off the dome with speed and efficiency of a vinedresser plucking bunches of grapes off the vine. The creatures seemed to have the ability to camouflage themselves like their Earth cousins, and they even turned transparent, but it was to no avail. The look in their all too humanlike eyes in the brief moment they could be observed by the Marines before the creatures were snapped off the dome were the looks of something that did not know whether or not it had been shot, kissed, powder burned, or snake bit. Once the feast was over, the Marines under the water reported the return of the animals to the surface.

Once Ceres heard that, he gathered a team of his riflemen and scientists into a craft to observe these creatures on the beaches when the surfaced. The craft made its way swiftly but carefully as they negotiated more solid patches of sand and boulders. Soon, they were at a spot that looked like it was their nesting area, as they observed smaller looking adults, and what they had to assume were newly born pups as it was the time of year for that. They opened up the craft, and Ceres said, "Observe, and get as much footage as you can, but don't get too close. If they are anything like what we have on Earth, they are far more aggressive than most would give them credit. With their size and the speed of their trunks, there is no telling what they could do to any of us."

With that note of caution, they debarked and approached. As they began to film, they saw the males returning to the surface, many of them with the squid-like creatures in their trunks, and the creatures still fighting back as defiant as ever, though now helpless being out of their environment. They vainly flailed their tentacles, but the animals kept them out of the creatures' reach as they approached the ones on the beach. They took them over to the boulders, and with a couple of good whacks against them, the creatures stopped moving, and they were brought to the ones that were nursing their young. Thus, it was shown that they were akin to mammals, and it would probably not be out of sorts to call them such. As they watched, they were showing themselves to be very caring parents, and also very intelligent, as their cranium size indicated a large enough brain cavity to contain a brain of such intelligence. It was an awe-inspiring sight for them to see. However, it all went to hell in a hand basket.

After about 20 minutes of observing, the one that looked like the largest, and looked like it bore a healthy pair of tusks, looked up to see the intruders behind some boulders, and it decided that they were a little too close for comfort. It made a trumpet like that of an elephant, but higher in pitch, and it began to charge. It moved in such a fashion that it seemed slow and lumbering, yet it was an illusion as it, (what they had to assume was the bull male,) closed ground quickly. The Marines observing knew trouble when they saw it and hightailed it back to the craft. Ceres was wildly flailing his arm to them to get into the craft, remaining outside to direct the retreat, and even to heave a couple of the slower ones into the craft. He hopped in and yelled, "PUNCH IT!" as they started the craft. The driver knew he had not time for turning it around and just put it in reverse. The animal was no match for the craft, and they began to lose the aggressor, until they backed into the boulder! Everyone was thrust to the back with nothing more than some bruises, but in the time it took to get back to their feet, and for the driver to get things going, the animal was almost on them. The driver had to put it into forward for a moment to get it off the boulder, and in that instant, Ceres noticed the danger: in their haste to get away, they had forgotten to seal the craft. Ceres shouted "Seal the craft!" but by the time this was said, it was too late. The animal had grabbed the nearest man to him by the arm with his trunk and yanked him violently out of the craft. He then threw the man into a boulder—**hard!** The man obviously had broken ribs now, and he tried to get onto his feet when the animal charged again and tossed the helpless man with his tusks further down the beach. The man was going to get mauled to death if actions were not taken, and, sadly, there was no other way to save the man except for the next action. Ceres gave the command to "euthanize" it, which was the nicest way he could say to dispatch the brute. This was the last thing he wanted to do, but his man was more valuable than that. The herd's top male would be killed, and he was saddened in wondering what that might do to the herd. He let loose with his Tsunami Attack as the others opened up with their AK-01 weapons. The six with Ceres proved their aim true as they animal was not only riddled with holes, but it was blown down the beach about ten feet. This was the first time they had ever tested these weapons on anything living, and thus, they were not sure what these weapons would do. They now knew, and they also now knew that even armored creatures may not stand a chance. The sounds of the pulses then scared off the other males that came to investigate, and thus insured that things would stop right there. With that, the corpsmen quickly went up to render aid to the man, who was now barely alive.

They stabilized him as best they could, and prepared a craft to take him back to the ship. This would also mean that that team would have to go as well, and that would leave him with a smaller force than he wanted. He went over to the radio and called back, saying, "UES Artemis…this is General Ceres. Prepare to receive a casualty—attacked by one of the local creatures. We have stabilized him as best we could, but we do not guarantee that he will survive the trip. To save him, we were forced to put down the attacking animal. This was the last thing we wanted. We are now going to conduct an after action review and prepare to go forward."

Serenity heard this, and she cringed in her chair. "Are you certain it is safe to continue with this exploration?" she asked, her stomach turning flips, "We have already had someone hurt from your wi...sorry, Admiral Jupiter's crew."

"With all due respect, your majesty," said Ceres, "We knew there would be risks, and something like this was the chance that we were willing to take. Besides, we're Marines: we're hard chargers, and we don't know the meaning of the word 'quit'!"

"Maybe this is time to learn?" she asked in an uncertain voice.

"I certainly hope that if there are hostile races out here in space that this is not your attitude, your majesty," responded Ceres.

She wanted to get mad, but Luna looked up and said, "Serena, he's right! Ugh, after all these years, and you still have that slight yellow streak…"

She looked at Luna and said, "That will be quite enough from you," and poked her nose as Ceres then said, "We are not just going to roll over here. We are going to get the mission done, but I am going to assure that these Marines understand the gravity of the situation, and ensure that nothing like this happens again. Things like this sadly have a learning curve, and that curve may include lost lives."

Serenity looked sad as she had to concede the point, and Ceres looked at the sad face on her screen. He then said, "Hey, buck up: everything's going to be fine. We'll all try to get home in one piece, okay?"

They ended the transmission, and Serenity then said, "This is always the hard part of the job."

"Everything is new to us," said Luna, "We must go with the flow. All we can do is learn from our mistakes and march on."

"How many and how bad?" asked Serenity.

"How many and how bad what?" asked Luna in return.

"Mistakes," answered Serenity.

"I would not want to wager a guess," was the only thing Luna could say.

Once the transmission was done, Ceres went back behind a rock and slammed his hat to the sand in disgust. He was angry that they had acted in such an undisciplined manner that something like this would happen, and he was also angered that he did not see it coming in time to pull the Marine out of the way and let the animal attack him. He would have been hurt, but he would have healed almost instantly, considering his state. Once he had blown off some steam, he came back around and said, "Alright, gather around here: after action review."

They all gathered around him as he stood in front of the smashed vehicle and began to speak: "What happened today should not have happened. I want you all to look at the dents on the back of this craft, the carcass, and keep in mind your fallen comrade. We almost lost a good man today and all because we panicked! That was not needed! Now, before I jump on you, understand that responsibility always starts from the top, and that means that I have to accept a bit of the blame myself. I did panic a bit myself, and that indeed was uncalled for. I do believe that it did spurn some panic in you, but in the same sense, that does not give me, you, or anyone any excuse for losing their military bearing as Marines and allowing this to happen. We came here with the intent of learning as much as we could about the planet, and we were going to attempt not to kill any of the wildlife if we could help it, unless we had to for either food if we ended up stranded, or self-defense as you saw here today. However, if we had kept things calm, even that would not have had to happen. We are here to explore, not to hunt. The only good things that came out of it was the hard lesson we learned about the lack of procedure in a case like this, and we do have an opportunity to learn just what our weapons did. From now on, whenever we board our craft, the first thing that is done is that the craft is sealed without question. I don't care how nice it is outside, but the craft will be sealed. If that had been instinctive in us, Corporal Ramstein would still be a part of this mission now. Also, for goodness sake, remember that we are Marines! The panic and fear that I saw displayed today was disturbing. Keep your bearing! This is not just because we have a reputation as Marines, but it also keeps things from happening that happened today. Okay, science team, I want a quick autopsy on the beast done. Find out how that thing ticks, and find out what kind of wound damage the rifles did. I want to try and pull something useful out of this."

They complied as the others went to repair the wounded craft. Ceres then went for a short walk, kicking himself for what had happened.

Within an hour, the crew had managed to repair the craft and get the information on the animal enough to where they could then move off the beach and inland to examine things there. The animal yielded much in the way of data for that creature, and it was a prime specimen for what it was. Indeed, the creature seemed to be a combination of seal and elephant. The information was certain to keep science guessing for ages. However, the data on the AK-01 was staggering. When the bullets hit, they were moving so fast that it seemed that they were passing through thin air. However, what it did to the flesh was tremendous! Because of their massive speed, the wound damage was staggering. The rounds entered small and left six inch holes on the other side, with passages just as wide about three quarters of the way through the beast. They only could speculate what this could do to human flesh, and one scientist spoke of the old sabot rounds that certain tanks used about 900 years ago. They would punch small holes in armor going in, make large holes coming out, and suck out everything in-between, essentially res misting anything living. "My compliments to the Kalashnikov Arms Company," said Ceres, "The common soldier and Marine have quite a weapon with which to fight the foe. I only hope the M-7 bullpups are just as effective. Well let's press on."

"It may not be that easy sir," said one of the scientists, "Look on the Doppler here."

Ceres did, and he did not like what he was seeing. If the radar was any indication to the darkening skies forming above them, it did not look good. He looked around and said, "Take the crafts to the highest points possible. If it is what I think, we may have to hole up."

He called back to the Artemis, and had them patch through to Mercury, who was still out on the high seas studying. "Mercury, it seems that some nasty storm is on the way," said Ceres, "Is there any way to confirm this?"

"I'm on it," she said, and then said to the ship, "Launch a weather probe up, and have it go over the artic where General Ceres is."

Immediately, a torpedo tube was cleared and the probe was inserted. It shot straight out, and then took a sharp 90 degree turn upward and launched at breakneck supersonic speed. Within ten minutes, it was over the area desired and it began to analyze. The data came back and stated that a massive blizzard was heading that way. Just as that was relayed, the wind began to pick up and toss some of the snow around. Indeed, the falling snow mixed with the wind would create whiteout conditions, and this was the reason for the call to go to the high ground. Ceres thanked them for the information, and Serenity chimed in, asking, "Maybe you should come back here until the storm passes? I could not stand to think of any of you lost in the storm."

"If it's all the same, your majesty," said Ceres, "We're going to tough it out. Storms like this don't tend to last more than one day, if that. We can hold tight until then. Besides, we have a time table. There are three more systems to explore before we head home, and we cannot break schedule."

Serenity looked saddened and said, "I could give you a royal command to return, but…"

"You must do what you feel is right, your majesty," said Ceres.

"If it were me, I would return," she said, "but that is a bit of the coward that still tries to come back from time to time."

"From time to time?" exclaimed Luna, "You mean…murrfff!"

Serenity covered her mouth tight, and she said, "I know you're strong—you've always shown it. If your Marines are as tough as you, I know I can trust you. Please, come through well."

As Luna struggled to get free, she stopped as she looked up to see the one single tear roll down her face in concern for "her boys." Ceres saw that and said, (in Japanese,) "Usagi-chan, thank you for your faith in me. I know we can make it…Dumpling Head!"

The last statement was said with a smirk, and now she started to get flustered like she used to when she was a teenager. Anyone else in uniform would have been in trouble for such a statement. Though there was indeed freedom of speech in the kingdom, there was still certain etiquette that was called for when speaking to the queen, but because of their past and closeness, he was only one of a handful that could have gotten away with that. Ceres smiled and finished the transmission with, (and still in Japanese,) "The more you change, the more you stay the same. Don't change too much, Usa-chan. We love you the way you are. Have a hot cup of coffee waiting for me when I get back."

"I look forward to that cup with you," she said, and the transmission cut. This mission was turning out to have many hazards, but she was always happy to be surrounded by her brave friends that made her feel so strong.

Ceres then said, "Seal everything off, and make sure the supplemental air tanks are filled. Keep everything just warm enough to live, but not so warm as to drain any reserves that we may need later. Keep it just warm enough not to freeze, but just enough to where light outerwear would be needed. Use this time to tend to your gear, rest up, and get a little rest and relaxation. We will not have these times often, but make the best of it."

Not ten minutes after he said that, it hit. The wind was loud and hard, and it was just below a category one hurricane. Those of the old New England region of Earth would have called it a nor'easter. It was not long before everyone realized why he called for the crafts to be brought the highest points around. The low areas were quickly filled, and they were certain that they would have taken too long to dig out of that mess. Up there, they would still get buried, but they could easily free themselves once all was said and done. They crafts all hunkered down, and the men contented themselves with cleaning their weapons, in which they now had more faith than ever, tending to their gear, reading, sleeping, and even throwing around the cards for a bit. Within 18 hours, the storm subsided, and the scientists on board the crafts began to analyze just how deep they were. Because of where they stopped, it was determined that they were under about six feet of snow—very manageable. The hover thrusters were turned on, and they slowly added power to them, making sure not to burn anything out by trying to take on too much too quickly. As they rose, the snow began to slide off in a fine powder, and they were soon free. Ceres then radioed in, saying, "Okay, we'll have to keep it on hover mode until it is time to go. We could easily fly for a time, but we need to keep it down here to study things. If we roll, because everything is so fresh as far as snow goes, and this being dry snow, we could sink in hidden low points, so we must hover. It will be a bit slower, but it will be safer."

As they went, they began to see some new creatures rising from the snow. They were all white, but looked like prehistoric giant sloths from Earth. They looked carnivorous, and they were headed for the shore. Curious, Ceres ordered the others to stay while his craft investigated. Once there, they went to a spot where the other creatures had been. The others went out to see to ride out the storm, but those that could not go died on the beach. It was upon these carcasses that the sloths fed. It was apparent they were carrion eaters, but he wasn't yet sure if they could hunt, and that would be left for later missions to discover. He returned to the others and they proceeded. As they did, it was discovered that underneath all the snow that fell and blew around was tundra. Ceres figured that, in time, such would be visible again. It was then that the now clearing skies revealed a range of pointy hills, and that got the geologists jumping. As the entered the hills, they discovered caves, and by the readings, the caves were loaded with mining minerals, enough to keep any geologist happy for decades. Everyone was cheering for this discovery, knowing that the earlier failure had been avenged. The corporal that was hurt was going to make a full recovery, and, despite having to kill that one beast, they had a successful mission. This area would also be left for future study, but it would be a rich study indeed. Ceres then radioed back to the Artemis, and said, "UES Artemis, this is General Ceres: your majesty, have the coffee ready—we're coming back, mission accomplished. I told you Marines get the job done."

Serenity jumped up and yelled, "Hooray!" and then stood embarrassed as everyone on the bridge stared at her outburst. No one dared laugh, though it was obvious that they were trying to hold it back. She collected herself and said, "Very well, general, I look forward to your company."

However, once the transmission ended, Luna, doing all she could to hold it in, left and went into the restroom where she rolled over in hysterics. Yes, the more she changed, the more she stayed the same, and that's the way everyone loved her!

3


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

"…_I can hear my old hound dog barking, chasing down a hoodoo there…born on the bayou." Credence Clearwater Revival_

While all this was going on, the exploration of the southern temperate zones were occurring. Luna hopped up on the console and said, "We still haven't heard from Mars yet."

Serenity sighed, upset that Mars had not been as frequent with her calling in. "She is so headstrong," she said, "She always does this to me!"

"That is a lot to say after 900 years, your majesty," responded Luna, "You would think that the relationship between the two of you would have become less volatile…unless you miss the bickering!"

Luna chuckled a bit with the last statement, but Serenity then said, with a chuckle of her own, "Truth is, it doesn't happen as much, and I almost miss it. It's as if a part of Mars went away. I act annoyed when she barbs me from time to time, but inside I say, 'There's the good old Rei.' You know, Luna, I've always wondered: are we now as we had been, or are we still Rei, Makoto, Minako, Tom, Ami, Chibiusa and Mamoru? Are the Outer Scouts who they were?"

Luna saw her pondering the matter seriously, and it was a solid question. Luna had always been glad that Serenity had finally regained her grace and poise from the Old Moon Kingdom. It took a couple of centuries, (knowing how hard headed that Usagi could be,) but the Queen that everyone now knew came forward, especially when she became pregnant with the present-day Princess Usagi, and then a mother. Parenthood had a tendency to produce maturity. Despite all that, no matter how much the other ones changed, because of who they had been transmigrated into, that signature would always be left on them. Indeed, then mind whales demonstrated that quite aptly when Serenity could not resist the urge to touch one of them. Luna hopped up into Serenity's lap and said, "Your Majesty—Usagi-chan—there is no way that any of you could ever stop being who you were. I think, because of who you had all been, and how that your minds reopened to who you had once been, it just makes all of you that much better as people. How many times have we seen the bookworm Ami come forward when it came time to research something for the kingdom? How many times have we seen that confident girl that Makoto had always been when her and Ceres are allowed to relax and be themselves? How many times have we seen the show woman Minako come forth when she gave the State of the Planet address for the planet for whom she is named? That will never go away. I was always hard on you, but I like what you have become, and I would say it is a pleasure to know you as my friend."

She began to purr and curl up on Serenity's lap. They awaited word from Mars, but they were quite content to be that way at that moment. The bridge crew, observing the whole thing, liked the spell that was being cast, and none dare speak, lest the spell be broken.

As that was going on, Mars indeed was getting deep into her phase of things. The all-terrain craft that the others were using was spending more time skimming water and quicksand than being on land. Indeed, it was swampy land into which they had entered, and Mars was more hoping for something more beach-like and tropical. However, this was the place that they had ended up, and they had no time to find the other areas. Truth was, the mission had been shaped to just get a feel for things and send back the information so that teams of Mercury's scientists, and teams from every university in the Sol system, to come back and make a thorough exploration of that world. They had at least two, if not three, other systems to explore, and then that would not address the other stars that were in reasonable reach that they had yet to visit. There was so much to do. Thus, she settled into the task of going over that area.

The sensors showed the conditions: temperatures around 30 to 33 degrees Celsius, with a humidity of at least 70%. In other words, it was hot and very muggy. There were also desert areas that she could have ended up, and it seemed her zone had more to explore than the others. With that, she decided to call both Mercury and Serenity at the same time to get their opinions. "Alpha six to Charlie and Headquarters Six, over?" she called over the system.

"Headquarters six here," said the communications officer on duty.

"Charlie six here," said Mercury.

"Is her Majesty present, or off stuffing her face somewhere?" joked Mars.

"Rei, you're so mean!" snapped Serenity.

"Whoa!" said Mars, "I haven't heard you use that one in a while, your Majesty. You must be angry."

Serenity shook herself and laughed, saying, "I was just reminiscing before you called, Admiral."

Mars chuckled a bit and said, "I should stop that."

"Don't you dare!" responded Serenity, "It's who you are. You're the only one who gets away with that, though."

"Well, me, and your court jester…" said Mars, who trailed off, and then came to an epiphany, who then snapped, "Wait, did you just compare me to that idiot?"

Serenity then began to laugh along with Luna, and she said, "Looks like I still know how to get your goat! Anyway, what's going on?"

Remembering her reason for calling, she said, "Oh, yes; I need some clarification. The zone to where you sent me has several different environments: there is a beach-like area about 160 km south of here, a savannah area about 300 km west of here, and this swamp where we landed. I don't think we will have time to go over all of it."

Mercury then said, "True, but I think where you are would be the most fact finding. We'll just have to do aerial scans of those areas before we go to the next system. I would think that your SEALs are up to it!"

"Hooyah!" was heard from all the craft in the team, and one of Mars' lieutenants piped up saying, "If the Jarheads can handle the artic, we can handle this!"

"Careful," said Mars, "General Ceres might not take kindly to that."

"Bah!" said the lieutenant, "We'll take on his boys in any exercise any day of the week!"

Another piped up and said, "Hey, you know why a Marine can't count past 13, right?"

A third said, "Yeah, because that's all he knows from undoing the buttons on…"

"That will be quite enough, ensign!" snapped Mars, knowing that the joke didn't have a nice ending, "We're all on the same team."

They all behaved, and Mars said, "We're guns for it. We'll make it happen."

"Careful, though," added Mercury, "There have been some dangers the others have already faced, including myself, and in that swamp, I think danger may go up tenfold."

"How so?" asked Mars.

"Well, in areas like that," pondered Mercury, "you have insect bites, venomous animals, and as we have already seen, killer plants. Remember: this is a world where there may be diseases the insects bear that we have yet to see, and, of course, no cure."

That sobered up Mars a bit, and she said, "Duly noted, Admiral Mercury. We will take it into account."

"Well, be careful," added Serenity, "We've already had some people badly hurt, and we don't need to see you or your brave SEALs come back the same way, or worse."

Mars wanted to say something, but she just laughed and said, "Roger, Alpha six out, Ready to Lead, Ready to Follow, Never Quit!"

Serenity said, "As tough as she and her team is, I sure would hate it for any for they ever faced."

"What was it she said her boys always said?" asked Luna.

Mercury responded before signing off, saying, "I believe it is, 'Don't bother running—you'll only die tired!'"

The craft had been taking some time to go over things to try to find a spot upon which to set down where there was stable ground. Once they had, they geared up. For this, the SEALs preferred to get into fatigues and use their field gear, because the crackerjack and senshi uniforms they wore on ship were more for show, and they were not practical as far as they were concerned. Mars, on the other hand, continued to wear her familiar senshi uniform, as was the habit of her peers. However, she was yet practical, in that she, for this, set aside her heels and put on proper boots for the terrain—red ones, of course—and she wasn't above wearing fatigues if the mission called for it tactically. As soon as they stepped out, the conditions hit them immediately, and they began to sweat profusely. At that, the few of the blue marked sailors of the science/medical team instantly handed out salt pills and told them to drink plenty of water. "We should have brought the still suits," said one of the team, and another said, "Well, there was no way of knowing that this would be this way."

"Hey, the old method of water and salt pills will work," said one of the medics, "Just stay hydrated, and be sure to use your universal water filters if you need to refill your canteens."

"That's a general order for this mission," added Mars, "No need for anyone to drop from heat exhaustion."

Another said, "What does this remind you all of?"

They all said at once, "Swamp training!"

Mars had even undergone this many centuries ago, just so she could properly lead the SEALs, and for them to realize that they had a commander that was not willing to push them harder than she was willing to push herself. "I said this when I went through it," said Mars, "and I will say it again: I feel like I'm wrapped in a warm, wet blanket!"

"Yeah, but you seemed to eat up the experience, ma'am," said another of the team.

She laughed and said, "Well, truth is, I hated the whole thing! I just couldn't let Princess Jupiter show me up. She was always considered the strong one."

"Hey, who didn't hate the whole training, ma'am," stated that one team member, "But, we got through it, and we are the baddest thing in the galaxy."

Mars rolled her eyes, and then said, "Let's just hope we never need to test that one!"

They began to proceed, and as a precaution, they locked and loaded their M-7 particle accelerators. They too didn't want to harm the flora and fauna as much as possible, but considering some of the dangers they may face, they could not be as hesitant. They had heard what had happened in the artic, and they realized they could not be as careful about that as to risk the men. They also took their time, knowing that, at any point, the ground could not be as stable, and they could find themselves hip-deep in mud, and having their teammates struggling to extract him or her. They also wanted to watch out for something trying to sneak up on them. It had already been shown that, though the wildlife on the planet was unique to that world, the animals still adapted and changed to suit their environments in ways that were similar to those on earth in matching environments. All along the way, the scientists were taking plant samples and soil samples, and letting the SEALs know what was safe to touch, and what was not; what was safe to eat, and what was not. They also had a special sonic device that transmitted sound waves far beyond normal hearing that were good for repelling insects. They also hoped it would have a repulsive effect on other things that might catch them by surprise. Indeed, as they made their way inland, they encountered heavily scaled creatures that looked like monitors, but were suited for moving in the water not unlike chimera on earth, (alligators, crocodiles, and such like.) Their slow movement did not garnish too much attention from the lizards, but they were spooked into the water. Indeed, they were twice as big as the Komodo dragons on earth, and they looked just as mean, if not worse. They gave these creatures much in the way of respect, and a wide berth. This made them even more vigil, because there was no telling what they may face inland.

The more inland they moved, the less swampy it became, but it also became more of a subtropical rainforest. One thing that they found interesting was how little there was in mammal-like life. What there was of that was small, and seemed to prefer staying hidden as much as possible. The reasons for this were soon to be seen. They saw a couple of those creatures moving as fast as they could across a clearing. However, one did not make it, as out of nowhere came a fast moving creature in flight and snatched it up with the proficiency of a striking rattlesnake. It took a roost in a nearby tree, and this was the first they could see the creature. It looked like a pterodactyl, but it was covered with colorful feathers. It then began to pick at and consume the creature it had been so fortunate to discover. This made them wonder if that was the only dinosaur-like creature they were going to face. They soon came to a clearing that looked about 500 meters in diameter, and in there they saw lizard-like creatures that rivaled the dinosaurs in size. They did not look like the brachiosaurs, but they looked more like iguana from earth. It was then that they came out of the forest!

Creatures about the size of Allosaurus came charging out of the forest. However they were also covered with colorful feathers, including their small front arms, which looked like flight wings, but really had no ability to make them fly. However, they still retained about three manipulatable digits despite the feathers. Their snouts also looked like a dinosaur of that kind, except the very end of it did indeed seem to form a beak. There were enough to well overcome the larger, slower creatures, and they began to do just that. The order was given to stay on the rim, and observe. The cameras of the scientists were recording the slaughter, and they loved the fact that they had the chance to observe this happening before them, and have an idea what it might have been like on earth. That's when it went south.

As things went on, Mars' instincts began to kick in, as did the others who had been trained in psychic abilities, and they tensed up. What was happening was that one of the creatures nearby put its nose to the air and began to approach that spot. It was more curious than anything, yet none of them trusted that this thing would not look at them as dessert to their meal. No one was sure what to do as the thing began to get closer. Close up, the beak looked vicious, and after watching how they wielded them in feeding with the proficiency of a samurai, they did not want to find out what kind of short work it would make on them. The closer they came, the more they saw the teeth that they also had. Suddenly it stopped, and seemed to lock onto one hapless SEAL in the brush. It suddenly lowered its head and started to move with a posture similar to a goose or swan looking to strike. Because of the psychic abilities that all the SEALs bore, it was apparent it meant business, and there was no need to make the order to fire. He raised his M-7 and fired near its feet, hoping the flash and the bang would scare it off. It caused it to back up some, but unfortunately all the other creatures heard that and also became curious. The way they were beginning to assess the situation led the scientists to realize that these creatures were displaying problem-solving smarts. The first creature now knew to be more cautious, and began to approach again, more aggressive this time despite its caution. That was it for Mars. She gave the order, "BACK TO THE CRAFT, NOW!"

Instantly, everyone bolted and began to sprint back to the craft. Mars also said, "Do not hesitate to use deadly force…after all; they don't care about that on us!"

Indeed, some were taking the time to take an occasional pop shot behind them if one was getting too close. They were also smart enough to use serpentine motions as they made their way along, using the trees to try to slow up the creatures. Seeing this, the creatures were beginning to get the movements and were now trying to outflank them on both sides, trying to negotiate the paths of least resistance. The SEALs were able to drop about three of them before the creatures changed tactics, and now they were just trying to move at a dead sprint as best they could to keep from being outflanked. When it seemed that was going to happen, Mars put her hands together, forefingers extended and touching and called, "FIRE SOUL!" separating her hands as two fireballs went out and over them, exploding into the trees where the creatures were trying to move in. That stopped them dead in their tracks, and they started to regroup to find a way around the flames. Mars was not worried about the fires, knowing how moist everything was, and knowing that the fires would dissipate with little damage to the forest. That was when they hit the marshes again, and it was because of their haste that they forgot about certain features of the land.

As they went, half of them suddenly found themselves mired in the quicksand patches around. Many of them kept their heads and managed to wriggle out of the mud and crawl across the surface, but a few began to panic and caused them to sink. "Stop struggling, you idiots, you'll only go in deeper!" screamed Mars as some of the team were working to calm the stranded and extract their comrades. However, the creatures had found their way around by this point, and were now not moving as fast, thinking that they now had their prey where they wanted them. Those not engaged in pulling out their teammates were opening fire to keep them away, but Mars had another idea. She then screamed, "LAVA BLAST!" snapping her hands around. Suddenly, on all the trees around appeared the blobs that marked her attack, and they all went off at once. The blast caused the creatures to retreat for a certain distance, and also to form a barrier around them of logs. However, she knew that the creatures would not be scared for long, and the logs would only delay them. Worse, now the monitors were becoming curious, and the scientists knew that, if they seemed stranded and unable to defend themselves. With haste, they were now pulling the others out, but they were also becoming a bit mired in the effort, and now the free ones were opening up on the monitors. Mars was using Flaming Sniper, and now the monitors were not as interested anymore, seeing a few of their friends drop. By the time the creatures arrived they were already heading into the water. They saw the feathered dinosaurs standing on the shore screeching defiantly, almost daring them to come back. "Next time, let's bring tanks!" said one of the lieutenants. Mars could not have agreed more! "Let's just go back to the ship. At least we know that we have to come back with more protection for this area, because we have no idea if something bigger lurked out there!"

Everyone was now heading back to the Artemis, having had enough adventure for that planet. Serenity went to the deck to see everyone in, and then she saw something that caused her jaw to drop. At the back of one of the craft, there seemed to be something being dragged along. Serenity asked for some binoculars, and she began to become a bit upset. In the Marine contingency, someone was being a bit more nonchalant than they probably should be. As the craft, the strains of Credence Clearwater Revival began to be heard as "Traveling Band" was being cranked out the outer speakers of the craft. On the back of it in speedos and in a life jacket was General Ceres on a wake board. He looked to be jamming out on the music, lip syncing as he went in between doing flips and tricks. The mind whales seemed to love this, doing tricks all alongside them. Once they got back, Serenity was up in his face, screaming, "What was that all about, general? That was not exactly in good military standing!"

"Whoa, your Majesty," said Ceres, "We were just celebrating a successful mission! After what we faced, the men deserved a little fun!"

He still looked a bit sheepish being chewed out in that outfit, dripping wet. The others were shaking their heads, but smiling as well. There was silence for about 20 seconds, and Ceres then said, "So do I get a Captain's Mast for boarding?"

Serenity started to raise a finger, and then thought of how amusing it would be for Ceres to face a summarized court martial for that, and she began to snort and try to suppress a laugh, but it wasn't working, she started to bust a gut as the rest joined in, and she finally calmed down enough to say, "Okay, you want to show off that bad, I sentence you to get together with Admirals Venus and Jupiter, and you are condemned to giving a concert of the ARK Juban Trio for the ship's entertainment!"

Ceres put on a mock face of shame saying, "It's a hard task, but I am cosigned to my fate," and pretended to mope off to get ready for doing a show, to which Makoto smacked him on the back of the head, and they both broke out in laughter, as she said, "Come on, Evel Kenievel: let's get ready to perform! Sometimes I wonder about you!"


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

"_The ultimate in disposing one's troops is to be without ascertainable shape. Then the most penetrating spies cannot pry in nor can the wise lay plans against you.__" Sun Tzu_

The concert was a smash hit, and all morale of the crew was greatly increased. The ship then took off and orbited a few times to do some studies from orbit before they took off for the next star system. The official name of the world they were leaving was Lelande II, but because it had been the queen to first set foot on that world, it was affectionately called _Serenity_, without knowing if that would stick. It seemed a fitting name, even though there were still dangers there that come with exploring a wilderness, especially one that spread across the whole planet. As they pulled away, they set their sights on Epsilon Eriandi and the planets that had been known to circle that world for some time. It was a solo yellow dwarf, so they were looking forward to examining a system that had much potential to be like their own. It was five light years closer to the Sun than where they had been, but they figured that, if they needed to get back or resupply after their next adventure in exploration, they would be close to home. There was no way of knowing what they would face, but they were certain that it would have just as much adventure as what they had already seen.

While all this was going on, there was another adventure gearing up. The outer scouts were preparing for a spying mission to gather information about this new alleged foe before something drastic could happen beyond what they had already seen. They believed alleged at this point because they were not sure if it was a misunderstanding or not. They had to find out if they were a foe because, if the Artemis ran into trouble, even though she could definitely hold her own in a fight; they didn't want to risk the loss of the queen. Endymion was feeling more and more of an urge to recall the ship until they knew what was going on, but Pluto assured him that, considering whom she was, and who she was with, there should be nothing to fear. They therefore turned their efforts to finding out from where that ship had come.

They all boarded the CT cruiser UES Catfish and went to where the battle had taken place. If they had warp technology as they did, they hoped that there would still be a warp signature that they could detect and follow. They reached the area of the fight, and it seemed that the ship had come in under impulse power, which made it easier to follow the trail. When they had reached the Kuiper Belt, it was where they detected the end of a warp signature, and they locked on to it with earnest. The ship cloaked and set the computer's controls to follow the course of that signature. As the vessel went along, they realized it was leading them to a star system that was close to Tau Ceti, which was a star that the Artemis was eventually going to visit. This concerned them greatly, and they hoped that it was not such that the trail was leading right to it. It was going to take some time, and they knew it would be about the same time that the Artemis would arrive at their next destination. Fortunately, it would be many light years away from where they were heading, and so, for now, everything was well.

While on the trip, they went over the battle scenes over and over again. Pluto was hoping that Saturn and Neptune would get some kind of reading off it. Neptune then said, "The only problem with what we can do is that it is not something we can control, or acts like an active sense. Mars is more the one skilled in that. Precognition just happens."

"What happens if nothing comes up?" asked Uranus.

Saturn thought about it, and then said, "That is the uncertain part. Just because something prophetic does not occur does not mean that there is not a danger. Like Neptune said: if Mars was here, she could tell us if there is danger coming."

That is when Pluto approached the ship's captain and asked, "Do you have any SEALs on board?"

"Of course, ma'am," said the captain, "This type of vessel is commonly used by the SEALs, so we do have some on board as a matter of course."

"Excellent," said Pluto, "Have that person summoned to the briefing room. We have use of that one."

"Aye, ma'am, right away!" was his answer, and they went to the briefing room.

About five minutes later came a young woman dressed in the fuku that all female sailors wore, marked in the red of the SEALs, looking much like what Mars had first worn when she had awakened, but in the navy blue that Mars now wore. It, however, was also marked by the stripes that marked a petty officer first class on her shoulder boards, and marked with a name tag which read "Olympia." She remembered her military etiquette, and she stood at attention, saluting, saying, "Petty officer Olympia, reporting as ordered, ma'am."

Pluto smiled and said, "Just have a seat! It's okay. We have military rank, but that is just for the sake of keeping things orderly in paperwork. We are more like civilians who work for the government lending our skills. However, for what we need, you will answer to us, but you won't have to worry as much about all the heel clicking and such."

She relaxed, and she said, "Thank you: the admiral isn't so strict about things, but she always teaches us to be in practice of that in case we address someone outside the SEALs."

By the looks of her, she almost could have been Princess Mars' kid sister, but they let it go. Olympia then added, "So, how can I help you?"

Pluto then briefed her on the mission, and then she said, "So, we need your psychic abilities in order to detect if there is danger imminent, or if we are where we need to be."

"Oh, that's a piece of cake!" she said, "I thought it meant infiltrating the enemy or taking down a bad guy."

"It just might," said Uranus, "It all depends. Having you with us will be helpful. All you SEALs have top secret clearance at least, right?"

"That is correct, ma'am," she uttered, to which Uranus said, "That's not needed."

"Hey, it's a good habit in which to stay," reminded Olympia.

"Well, let's get to the bridge," said Neptune, and they all adjourned to the bridge.

Once there, they were still in the process of tracking the warp signature at the fastest speeds possible. They knew it may be a couple of days or longer, but not too long. It could not be much longer than that. Unless the strangers had a travel velocity beyond understanding, there was no way that they could have come all that far, especially if they were there to spy. There would be the need stay in contact with…well…someone. As they went, it was obvious they were heading in to uncharted waters, to turn a phrase. A couple of days did indeed pass, and finally, they found something. The navigator then said, "Approaching Tau Ceti, captain."

It was then they noticed that there were several new warp signatures, and it was then that Olympia said, "There's something out there!"

The order was given to drop out of warp speed but to stay cloaked. When they came out, they saw two vessels seeming to orbit about one another, and there were transmissions going back and forth. One was a large vessel—about heavy cruiser size—and the other looked more like a frigate. The larger had the same shape as the other that had been destroyed not days before, and the smaller was more wedge shaped. They tapped into the chatter and, of course, it was in unknown tongues to anyone on the vessel. However, they had a new device that they had yet to test, and now was the time to try it.

Because the whole Sol system used Esperanto now, all the computers had been geared in this way. Yet, they also knew that the language was developed in such a fashion as to use similar words and sounds that would be the most universal between peoples of the Earth. They experimented to see if it was possible for a computer to take that a step further and take any unknown tongue and play a computerized form of an audio cryptogram, learning to use common sounds and phonetics to decipher what could be common verbs like "to be," or "to have," or "to go," and so forth. From there, it could figure out commonly used phonetics to decipher equivalents to commonly used phonetics in their tongue to gauge some kind of alphabet, and so on. They had tried it on Earth languages, and then on languages that had died and fallen out of use, and the computer was able to do its job. Now was the real test. What they heard back and forth were what sounded like clicking and squealing sounds, and no one had any idea where to start. However, the computer began to lock on to Earth languages that used much in the way of phonemes, and it began to run it against similarities of the Chinese language, and the language of the !Kung bushmen of Zimbabwe. Once the computer had the framework, it first came up with a language that was a mix of the previously mentioned two, and then it began to shape that framework to what it heard. Soon, it began to decipher the language, and then once that was done, it started to translate. It was then they realized that what was happening could get real bad real quick.

As it began to pick up on it, they heard, "…violating our space again! We shall never join or submit to your tyranny! The Gnarl needs to know their place!"

"This was not a request this time!" snapped the Gnarl ship, (though they were not sure who was who just yet. They had their guess, but they had to be sure.)

"Are you threatening war?" snapped the protagonist in this crisis.

"You shall not submit," said the antagonist, "then you make war inevitable, though we cannot figure out how you think your petty fleet could stand against us. Stand aside, spare your lives today, and let the invasion force through."

"Talk about cocky," said Uranus, "They brag about an invasion, and they don't even take the time to be stealthy about the thing."

Soon, the frigate was joined by about seven other vessels, ranging in size from corvettes to light cruisers. Yet, this was all that came out to face them. Since this was an intelligence mission, any calls to engage a target would have to come from the outer scouts. Saturn then said, "Sadly, we have to let them engage. It could be that the smaller have weapons that are far beyond what we have."

However, Olympia was shaking her head and saying, "I am not so certain of that. I can tell you that the larger ship is the Gnarl."

"Okay, so we know who was behind the attack," said Pluto, "But we have to make sure that we do not interfere on affairs as much as we can. However, if they are talking invasion, I can only think their purpose was to size us up."

"I hope they got an eyeful!" said Saturn defiantly, "We do have a sizeable fleet and fighter force with powerful weapons!"

"True," said Neptune, and then Uranus said, "Yet, we only beat one ship, and we had two. There is no telling how big the area of space they control is."

"That basically means that, the bigger the area controlled, the bigger the fleet could possibly be," added Neptune.

As they were assessing things, they watched the seven smaller wedge shaped ships all begin to maneuver to block passage of the Gnarl craft, which then brought about a response of their blasters. After a few volleys, one of the corvettes vanished in sparks. The captain then said, "Do we intervene?"

There was silence for about 30 seconds. The worry was getting involved with something more than what the kingdom needed to be in, and they were balking. A destroyer went up in sparks, though they were pounding the Gnarl cruiser. They were doing damage, but not enough. They had weapons on par with the larger vessel, but they were not enough. Then, Saturn's eyes got that glassy look, and she began to say, "Invasion: they intend to invade and conquer all they find. Beware: they are like locust!"

She then staggered and grabbed a console to steady herself. That was all Pluto needed to hear, and she said, "Looks like we may have a new ally, like it or not. Commence with the attack!"

Scanners on both ships were going crazy as a new vessel emerged, and it was far different to anything they had yet seen. The remaining five vessels were not sure what to do, and wondered if they should break off the attack, and try to summon the rest of the fleet. However, they watched the unknown vessel was maneuvered behind the Gnarl ship when it became visible, and then it began to launch what they had to assume were light balls from several spots on the bow. They seemed to act like their missiles, but they were certainly not comparable to any star fleet they had yet encountered. The Gnarl, however, were now in a panic. They had no clue how this ship just popped out of nowhere, but they did know from the records of their fallen comrades before they were destroyed that it resembled the vessels that had attacked and destroyed their sister ship. It was only one ship, but it had the element of surprise, and was set at a vulnerable spot on the ship. As a result, they had to shift the shielding so as to cover it, but it weakened the vessel's overall defenses. The ship shook with the impact of the torpedoes, and they knew that, though the shields blocked the explosive power of the torpedoes to some extent, it still shook the ship, causing superstructure damage. It started to maneuver to try to compensate for the new foe, but the other vessels took the chance to maneuver to better attacking positions and then began to pound on the vessel. The strange vessel was maneuvering to the engines now, firing both torpedoes and particle accelerators. Before long, the shields were breached, and after another volley, the Gnarl vessel exploded in a bright flash and then vanished quickly in the vacuum of space. In one flash, an initial invasion force was no more. They were about to go back into cloak when the five vessels there surrounded the Catfish, and started to transmit messages to it. The universal translating programming started to piece their language together, and though it took a little longer this time, they finally realized that they were demanding identity and affiliations. They also warned by this point that if no response was given, they would either surrender their vessel and prepare to be boarded or prepare for attack. Quickly, the hailed the vessels from this world around Tau Ceti and they said, "We are the UES Catfish from the Silver Millennium Kingdom. This seems odd to say, but, we come in peace."

There was silence for about 20 seconds because, first, they did not know the intentions of the foreign vessel, and second, they wondered why these strangers somehow knew their tongue. They then said to the Catfish, "If your intent is peaceful, then we do believe that you would accept a boarding party?"

The captain called things back to normal by lowering the shields and telling the ship to stand down. The captain then said, "Unknown vessel, we stand ready to accept your shuttle. Lock onto our signals and we shall show you where to dock."

The science team was then already rigging their portable computers to be ready to translate for them. They had to do this right, or there was no telling if they would create a new foe along with the foe they had now discovered. One thing was sure: they came on a fact-finding mission, and they had indeed succeeded more than they intended.

3


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"_Secret agent man, secret agent man: they've given you a number and taken away your name." Jimmy Webb and Johnny Rivers_

The shuttle from the unknown vessel came over and landed on the spot on the deck designated for such, and an airlock tunnel connected to the hatch on the shuttle. However, they were not sure what they breathed, and they sent in a transmission to them that said they breathed a high oxygen and nitrogen atmosphere, and they responded by saying that this was also what they breathed. When the newcomers scanned it, they said it was richer than what they were used to, but it would do fine. They traveled down the tunnel to the hatch leading into the ship, and they were met by a small party consisting of the ship's captain, the outer scouts, Olympia, and a few members of the SEALs. What entered were three upright creatures that did not look too dissimilar to Earth felines. Their fur patterns ranged from standard toms to what we would have called the big cats. Two of them wore what looked like military uniforms and that which was similar to Scottish kilts, but the one in the middle that had a mane was wearing gray and gold silken robes that were as elaborate and colorful as the fur patterns on his colleagues. After a few cursory glances from both parties over the appearance of what stood before them, the humans lifted up what looked like ear buds and put them in their ears. Three more were produced, and they gave indications that they should do the same. Because the computer had already analyzed the newcomer's language, the humans began to speak. The captain then said, "On behalf of our beloved Queen Serenity and the Silver Millennium Kingdom I welcome you on board our vessel. As I am also authorized by our crown and congress, I also give to you official greetings from our crowned heads and prime minister."

The newcomers started to speak in a language that sounded like organized and structured growls, meows and purring, and what came back was, "We thank you for your aid and for your gracious greeting. I am Hurram, the first officer of the cruiser Prin. In the name of the honorable President Kurrzzah of our home world of Nekonia, I give you thanks for your assistance and welcome you to our system. I assume your intentions are as peaceful to us as was your might to strike a blow against our enemy?"

"It seems that your foe is our foe," said Pluto. "I am Commander Pluto. We came here on a fact-finding mission."

"I see you found quite a bit," said Hurram, "However, what kind of facts were you trying to find?"

"It had much to do with why this 'Gnarl' was snooping around our system?" responded Uranus.

Hurram raised his eyebrows and said, "So, this corner of the galaxy is not enough for them I see."

They all looked at him, but the captain said, "Perhaps a tour of the ship would be nice, and then we can discuss business. Normally, that would not be permitted, but since you are quite a space faring race, this can be allowed."

When Hurram asked about this, they explained how nearly a millennium before, there was a science fiction genre that had that government have a general order that would not allow any race on any planet to know of anything beyond it unless they were on par technologically with that government. This way, it would allow that planet to develop normally, and prevent things being introduced for which it was not ready. This made great sense, and Hurram said, "We had our suspicions, but I would say that you are indeed setting them at ease."

Thus, the first race outside the Sol system with which the Silver Millennium Kingdom ever encountered was a success. It remained to see how they tied into the Gnarl.

As they sat to dinner, they asked for what they cared, and it turned out that they were nearly exclusively carnivore. They described some of the things they ate, and they were introduced to fillet mignon. They were each given about three with a small pile of rice pilaf, and some good wine. They toyed with it at first, not sure what to make of it, but when they dug in, their eyes rolled back into their heads in ecstasy. "This is exquisite! You will have to tell us how you prepared this!"

"Well, we can leave you with the kinds of meat we normally eat, checked for things to which you may not be immune, and give you some recipes translated for you. If we can then gain an alliance, then access to this would be gained. We then can have a full cultural exchange."

As they dined, discussion eventually slipped to the Gnarl. Hurram then said, "The Gnarl is a race with nothing but conquest on their minds. They only have one star system which is theirs, but they are not content with that. They have conquered and control six other systems, and they are seeking to make us the seventh. We had a large fleet at once to contend with them, but since they have the resources, they have worn us down by attrition. We thought it was over until you arrived."

"No doubt that means they shall be back," said Saturn.

"Indeed, young one," said Hurram, to which Saturn chuckled. Hurram looked askance at this, and Pluto then said, "Fear not, because she is just reacting to your statement. She is older than she looks!"

"How is that possible?" he then asked in return.

Uranus was more than happy to respond to this and said, "Because of certain effects of a special crystal within the queen's possession which she used to protect our home world from disaster, all of us now can live for nearly two millennia. However, a handful of us are now immortal because of that…well, nearly so. We cannot survive annihilation, save for her," and pointed to Saturn. She then said, "You are looking at a human phoenix. She has an attack that is devastating that she only uses as a last resort. She has actually been born a few times."

The Nekonians stared at this, now realizing just what kind of power sat before them. At first, one of the Nekonians had an evil thought pass through his head about that crystal and getting his hands on it, which caused Olympia to tense up. However she eased up once she detected the reverence in all three of the Nekonians when they realized it would be better to make friends than enemies in the state that they were in. Pluto then asked, "What else do you know about the Gnarl?"

"They are like locust," said Hurram, which received knowing looks glanced between the outer scouts and the captain and Olympia, "and they rape planets. Part of their conquest is because they are desperate. However, rather than asking for help, which is what I really think some of their nobles want, their queen is an absolute megalomaniac. They really do not know how to conserve, and if they could only be taught…well, that's wishful thinking with her in power."

"It seems they want to add both of our worlds to the list," said Neptune, and then the captain said, "I am going to patch through a conference call to the king. I think a treaty is in order, and considering things, this cannot admit delay!"

A couple of hours later, in the conference room, a formal chair was set at one end while Hurram and his two men sat at the other, and the rest with the bridge officers around the table. Hurram received official word to act as ambassador for his world, seeing that, though they were now trusting this new race that called themselves Terrans, they still wanted to be careful and not risk any important government officials. However, the press on Nekonia was spreading word fast about the newcomers, and a possible day of jubilee to come. As they sat to the meeting, a hologram of Kind Endymion appeared with some fanfare, and he greeted the Nekonians warmly. Much was discussed, and a treaty indeed was drawn up with aid of both governments, and it was sent to the kingdom congress for approval. In the meantime, the king ordered that the Saturnian flotilla go to Nekonia via executive order, using his 30 emergency powers, and doing so knowing that this treaty would not take that long to pass. If the Gnarl were to come back, they would be in for a big surprise. When the image of the king vanished after official proceedings were finished, strategy began to be discussed.

As they talked about the activities of the Gnarl, they learned that they often took slaves, and that gave Pluto an idea. After some discussion, it was decided that Olympia would go in disguise as a Nekonian and deliberately get captured. They would put a device on her and track her via the Catfish in cloak. Once they were there, they would drop in the outer scouts to skulk around and find out as much as they could about their new foe. There was some worry that Olympia could not handle herself. However, it was explained to them what kind of training she had received, and they were stunned. Olympia said, "I am of the best Sol has to offer! We have a few mottos: 'Ready to lead, ready to follow, never quit,' 'The only easy day was yesterday,' 'Don't bother running; you will only die tired,' and my favorite, 'If it don't suck, we don't do it.' Besides, on Earth, my family came from a place called New Zealand, and I am from the natives called the Maori. We are brave warriors who make sure the enemy never sees our backs!"

A bunch of the SEALs around called out, "HOOYAH!" and they all began to break into the Hakka. Hurram was impressed and said, "You remind me of my homeland! I am now convinced that you shouldn't watch out for the Gnarl, they should look out for you!"

She just smirked and said, "Hoo…yah!"

The next step was to take her to a world that was in the next orbit over and being colonized. However, because it was on the other side of the star at that time, Gnarl raiders loved attacking that colony to take slaves. It would be there they would plant Olympia. What they would do is use some temporary plastic surgery to alter her appearance enough not to be suspected, and also to disguise an ear bud so she could use a hidden translator. They would pretend that she was a mute, and illiterate, living as an urchin, which would make her the perfect target for the slavers. Once they got to her, the Catfish would follow cloaked, and then deposit the outer scouts wherever they were going and then to get as much information as they could, while Olympia did what she could from within. With that, they went around the star and deposited her in a sparsely populated area. The Nekonian vessel then took off while the Catfish waited in cloak. As they left, Hurram transmitted, "One thing to note: your cloak is effective, but, you must be careful. Now that we know you are there, and know roughly where to look, there is an ever so slight disruption to the star field around you, and if they can detect that, you could be vulnerable. We also detect a neutron surge in that area, so, if they were able to just catch it…"

"Warning taken and well noted, Commander Hurram, and thank you for telling us," said the captain of the Catfish, "That indeed will come in handy."

The Nekonian ship then went its way while they waited. It wasn't but 8 hours when a Gnarl ship arrived. It was a bit smaller, and a bit beat up, which led them all to believe that this was not a normal ship of the fleet, and thus, they were working independently. All they could do is hope that Olympia could hold her own.

Planetside, Olympia was playing the part well, and you could not tell her from one of the natives. She spent a few hours observing the behaviors and mannerisms of the Nekonians so she could mimic them well enough to not be detected. Indeed, they were very feline in nature, and so she knew that she would have to make many sensuous movements. She would be ready. When the slaver arrived, two shuttles descended and a couple of squads emerged. They were all armed, but their clothes were not uniformed, so that gave indications that they were not military regulars, and thus she knew they were independent traders. However, the sight of them turned her stomach! They had not a hair on them, beady pink eyes and ugly snouts. What caught her even more was the hideous rack of teeth they all possessed. They looked like they had just walked off the set of a horror film and right into her reality. She had to get their attention without looking like she wanted to be captured. As the slavers started to bully some of the colonists and force them to come, she bided her time and hid as if she was trying to evade capture. When it looked like they were about to leave, she made a dash for the cabins, but she was also obvious about her actions, and one of them said, "Wait, look, we have one more!"

They fired a few shots past her to get her to stop, yet she didn't stop. In fact, she was going to lead them on a merry chase as to throw off all suspicion. She let them run after her for about 15 minutes, and then she let herself get cornered. She took a defensive position like a cat and hissed, as if she was ready to fight. Truly, if these Gnarl knew what stood before them, they would be running for their lives. She had mastered at least two of the senshei attacks that higher level members of the SEALs all learn, and hoped one day to perfect all the attacks. She could have easily wiped them out, but that was not the purpose. However, one of them said, "We have a feisty one here!"

Another then said, "You don't want to risk getting clawed. Just stun her."

Before she could fully register what they intended, they hit her with a heavy stun from a blaster and knocked her for a loop. This was not what she sought, but at least it would bring the results she wanted. Besides all that, the tracking device on the translator was working well enough, so the others could follow her.

On the Catfish, they had tracked her the whole way, and then they detected the shuttles lifting off, and the device showing that Olympia was on one of them. This was what they had aimed for. Once the slaver started off, the Catfish was right on her tail. Using some counterintelligence tech on the Catfish, they tapped into the slaver's computers and began to gather data on their warp trajectory, setting the same course themselves. As soon as the slaver went into warp, the Catfish was right behind. Hours later, Olympia came to, and felt like someone was licking her head. When she did come to more completely, she realized she was in the arms of an older cat, one she assumed was female, and that one was cleaning her head as if she was her kitten. Once she stirred, the older one said, "You poor dear; you should have stayed hidden, little one. You are too pretty to have had them take you."

She turned to see the one acting like a mother cat, and she was beautiful. Her fur was very much like a Maine Coon Cat, with sweeping green eyes that emoted an inner joy. "What is your name, kitten?" asked the woman. Olympia looked down as if she was ashamed, and then pointed to her mouth and shook her head. "Oh no, you can't talk?" said the female aiding Olympia, "Can you write?"

That, Olympia could answer truthfully, because she did not know the language to write it, and so she shook her head. The female then asked, "How did you get to that colony? Where are your mother and father?"

She then put on the crocodile tears, hoping the female would make the right assumption. The female said, "You poor, poor dear! What happened?"

Olympia looked around, and then put an angry look on her face. "Oh," she said, "Now I understand."

She pulled Olympia in and started to purr. The embrace was warm and welcoming, and she indeed reminded her much of her own mother back on Mars. This female was very caring, and she had the feeling that not all was right with her. This was confirmed when she said, "It feels so good to hold someone again. I have much anger with these monsters as well. They took my children, and I have no idea whether or not they are alive. Perhaps now I can find them, though this was not the way I hoped. If we can get out of this, I shall take you in, dear child."

She sat Olympia upright and then said, "Now, we have to call you something. Hmm…what shall I call you? You seem graceful and yet strong. I know…Prr'ann!"

The translator let Olympia know that the name meant, "She of strength and grace." It seemed that their names could be combined with known adjectives, and thus this race must have had quite a diverse set of names for the people. The female then said, "I am Mirini. Stay with me, and I will keep you safe."

Olympia smiled and thought, "_Dear Nekonian, when we get out of this, it is I that shall keep you safe for your immense kindness to me._"

She knew Mirini was lonely and heartbroken, and she needed a friend. However, though it was not a part of the mission, if there was some way that she could come back, she would make it a point to one day reunite her and her children. She then embraced Mirini, and then gave her a look that said, "We will get through this!"

Back at Saturn, Princess Usagi and the quartet were in the mission room, with the Princess looking at a magazine, and the four deep into a game of Bid Whist. It was then when the ship's intercom said, "Attention all decks: we are now on general alert. All hands are to report to your department briefing rooms for further details. Department heads are to report to the conference room. That is all."

Usagi and the quartet were already there, so they put their things up and took their assigned seats in the mission room, but Usagi, being wing commander, went to the bridge, knowing that she would get the full mission details, and then prepare her department's game plan for the mission and brief them on it. One thing that bugged her was why this was happening. She remembered the attack, but now she wondered if they were about to go to war. This was not something her mother had in mind when her mother's mission began. When she arrived at the conference room, though she was technically not in command, everyone arose to their feet. She waived them to sit down and said, "We don't have time for all that. If we are on general alert, we have not a moment to lose."

"Quite true, your majesty," said the captain, "Word just came in from Earth, and your father. The Catfish managed to make an ally, and also engaged another of the kind of ship that you combatted days ago. We now have a name for them, and we now have a viable threat as well."

With that, he briefed everyone on what had happened, and where this was all taking place, and he then said, "Technically, they are not yet our ally, but it is certain to pass the legislature for the king and prime minister to sign. Yet, because this may not admit delay, we whole flotilla has been sent as an extra defense force. We have no idea how big a force we may face, but we have to have all we can afford for now. At the least, it will be an initial thrust. If this does break into all-out war, help will be right behind. Right now, our counterintelligence people are infiltrating the enemy's space in order to get as much on our foe as possible."

Usagi said, "Um…has my mother been told yet?"

The captain hedged a bit, and then he said, "He has not, because he fears your mother may panic and do something rash. However, if it does get bad, the Artemis will be recalled. We will need all our top commanders for this, and your mother has to be in on the decision making according to the constitution."

"I still don't like it," responded Usagi, "I think they need to come back regardless."

"Well, you may override me, but you would have to override your father," said the captain.

Usagi said, "When this is done, and the wing is briefed, a call to my father will be the first thing that I do!"

"Very well, your highness; that is your prerogative."

With that, he went over the tactical maps to give everyone the feel for what they entered, and he then said, "We truly are green in regard for this kind of situation, but I am sure that, as professional as you all hold yourselves, we can learn what we need to quickly. Conflict is never good, but, it is good we can be blooded in something of this level rather than in a full-fledged war, where the stakes would be much higher. With that, please tend to your departments. You are dismissed."

As Usagi went back to the mission room, looking over the files and preparing a game plan, she began not to like how her mother was being left out. Indeed, she would be having some words with her father once the meeting was done.

3


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

"_Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:" Proverbs 6:6_

Usagi gave the briefing, and told the pilots, "Go over your fighters with your crews and make sure all is ready. We do not need everything going haywire on us if we have to go at it. Once I take care of some royal matters, I will be joining you. You will then stay at the ready room in shifts. Alpha squadron will take the first 6 hour watch and then the other three squadrons after that in rotation. Of course, if it gets hot, well, you know what to do. Tend to your duties, and dismissed."

As soon as that was done, she went to her cabin and immediately put a secured call into the palace. Because of subspace radio technology, (allowing the mind bending transmission speeds of warp 25,) they could instantly communicate. The call went through to her father, who was in his study at that moment. The screen came on to show a smiling Endymion, saying, "Hello, my small lady, and how…"

"What are you thinking!" she snapped, "How could you call for all this action and not tell mother, or at least call her back? The scouts may be needed for this!"

Endymion snapped back like he had been slapped, shocked at the immediate retort of his daughter. Apparently, this went beyond a social call. He regained his composure and said, "Hey, slow down there, missy! That is no way to talk to your father or king…"

"You left mom out of this!" she retorted, her not being afraid of his words at this point, "That is not right!"

He sighed, realizing that she did have some justification in being upset, considering that this was indeed her mother as well, and that, constitutionally, she needed to be in the whole process. However, there was nothing constitutionally that covered this situation. He then said, "Honey, this was something that we didn't think about when we formed the constitution of the kingdom. There was nothing that dealt with your mother wanting to go star hopping."

"The reason why I am upset has nothing to do with that!" she said, now angry that her father was not getting it, "She is proverbially in uncharted water! Indeed, if there is a threat, she is in the dark to the whole thing. The whole incident started after the Artemis had left the system. If they get attacked…"

She let the statement dangle, and Endymion knew that she had him cornered. He then said, "Look, the Artemis is a battleship. I am certain she can hold…"

"She is only one ship!" Usagi shot back, now wanting a better explanation than what she was getting, "What if she is hit by a small flotilla or battle fleet? Even the mighty Bismarck could not stand up against a multiple ship attack. Even if her rudder had not been hit and they found her, the amount of shells they threw at her would have done her in regardless of how able she was to fight. You have to call her home."

The main reason why the king had said nothing was worse than that, and he did not want to go there, but his daughter was not having it. Finally, he said, "Look, you know your mother. I know she has come light years from when you met her in her 20th century form, but there are still certain things..."

Once again, he was cut off, but this time it was Usagi finishing the sentence, "…that have not changed. Are you afraid that, if you told her, she would panic? Okay, I have to give you that one. But, the other scouts are with her. I'm sure that they could bring her to reason if we told them."

"If your mother panicked," responded the king, "she would override her friends and rush right into where the action was at that time. She would not wait for the briefing as to what was happening, and she would absolutely ruin all that the outer scouts are trying to accomplish this minute. That would more than certainly endanger the life of one of the SEALs who volunteered to infiltrate the Gnarl. She is in a covert situation, so she cannot be discovered, or her life is guaranteed over. You can understand that, right?"

Usagi sighed and said, "I guess you're right. I'm sorry I got mad."

"Hey, Small Lady, she is your mother, and you have a right to be upset," he said to her, "Please, just trust me a bit more, okay?"

"Okay daddy," she responded, and this time with much in the way of a little kid, "I have to go check my fighter now."

"Speaking of which," responded Endymion, now sounding more like a doting father, "You did well the other day, but stay behind the Quartet. You are the heir, and our only child. The kingdom respects you greatly for putting yourself into such dangerous duty, but, please, still, be careful for me?"

"I love you daddy!"

"I love you too!"

She kissed the screen and the transmission ended. As she went to her fighter, she thought about her mother and what she would do in that situation. Who would show through: Neo-Queen Serenity, or Usagi Tsukino? When she had everything ready, she knew that she had to call her uncle, Duke Shingo, and tell him what was going on. He did have a right to know.

At that point, the Artemis was now approaching Epsilon Eriandi, and they were coming into it in such a fashion as to come in vertical to the three debris belts that surrounded the star. Indeed, the system was incredible to view at the spot where they stopped to observe, and as many scientists had figured, there were three gas giants that sat in-between the belts. However, because of their state and massive size, there was no way that there could be life on them. In addition to that, because it was not as powerful a star as the Sun, though close to our own, any moons that may orbit them were suspected not to be holding life. With a quick warp leap, they got in close to confirm this, but in doing so, they also detected something that Earth astronomers could not have detected. When they got close, they realized that two of the belts were asteroid belts, and the outermost one was similar to the Kuiper belt, but much broader in size. Yet, inside the innermost belt was found a planet that was blue green, but covered with many white clouds. At a distant scan, there was much in the way of water, and the atmosphere was taller and thicker. The atmosphere was at 1.5 atmospheres as compared to Earth, and the size of the planet was such that the circumference was 48,280km around. This meant that the atmosphere was thicker and the gravity was greater than what they would be used to. Mercury found it interesting that the planet wasn't sweltering hot, and then realized that the planet's location was about the orbit of Mars as compared to the Sun, and because of that, and because of the thickness of the atmosphere, the temperatures were warmer than Earth, but not to where they would be beyond the planet's ability to support life. Another interesting sight was the fact that the planet had a broad ring about it not unlike what Saturn would have. However, this one did not go all the way to the planet's exosphere, so there was a gap. They began to ponder what kind of life may be on this world, and what that ring would look like in the night's sky when another thing about the planet revealed itself—it held a spacefaring race! This was discovered when about five craft about the size of light cruisers appeared quickly around the Artemis, along with fighters that were forming a perimeter and doing so not unlike a bunch of African Driver ants forming a protective line with soldier ants as the workers went out to forage. Serenity said, "We're under attack!" but Venus kept her head and said, "Go to yellow alert."

Mars looked at her funny and said, "Yellow alert: no shields?"

"We don't know their intentions yet," responded Venus, "They might interpret that as readiness to fight. Yet, if they see us charging up our batteries, they might get the hint that we are willing to fight if they press the issue."

Down below, Ceres was getting his marines into position as Jupiter was getting the Greenbacks ready at the ship's spots where boarding attempts may be tried. On the bridge, the communications officer said, "It seems that the lead vessel is hailing us."

Yet, as that was being relayed, a few green bolts shot over the bow. Venus interpreted that for what it was—a warning shot to stop where they were. She called for all stop and said, "Set the particle accelerators at some targets in case, but not the rail guns just yet. Have the anti-fighter batteries at the ready."

There was a bit of a problem, though. The transmissions were hard to peg, in that, there was the main communication coming through from the vessel, but other, very slight, transmissions coming in with it. Because of that, the universal translators were having a hard time pegging down the language. Some more shots came out, and this time very close to the hull, though they had stopped. Venus then said, "What is taking so long?"

"Ma'am," responded the communications team, "The computers are having a hard time pinning down the language…oh, wait, we have it!"

What finally came through was, "…your last warning shot. Cease and desist or we shall attack. You are outnumbered and we would make quick work of you."

Venus quickly shot back, "Please, hold off—we come in…"

However, one bolt hit the bow and shook the ship. The hit was interesting, in that, the blast mark did not look like an ordinary blast mark, but it looked like a piece of modern art. Venus called out, "CEASEFIRECEASEFIRECEASEFIRE!"

The other ships stood to, and they called back, "What is your purpose?"

"We are explorers!" responded Venus, "This is our first major venture outside our own system. We come in peace!"

"Oh really," came the response, "Then, why do you do so in a ship that looks more geared for combat than for exploring?"

That really was a tough question, considering that the idea was to have the firepower needed in case they met a hostile force. They just never expected to meet one that moved that quickly. Venus then hit on an idea, and said, "Your Majesty, I think this is more your department."

Serenity took over and said, "This is Queen Serenity, and I have come as the representative of our system to negotiate peace with any race of being that we meet. Indeed, we come in peace."

Venus then chimed in and said, "Would we be willing to risk our own queen if we had warlike intent?"

There was silence for about 30 seconds. What they did not understand was that the term "queen" meant much to them, and that, if it had been them, they never would have done that. They came back and said, "Your people have great courage. We would have never risked our queen mother in such an act. Only a race intending peace would put their mother before them in such a place."

The fighters then returned to some of the ships, and then back to the home world. Then the unknown vessel said, "We shall now give you full escort to our world."

Two cruisers then pulled up alongside, and a squadron of fighters took position in front and behind the Artemis in what they only could assume to be an escort formation. While this was going on, the cruisers were sending back transmissions that all was well, and that they needed to have some diplomats ready. However, Mars was looking like she was in pain. Mercury asked, "What's wrong?"

"They are all faint, but I hear so many voices," she said.

As she was saying that, a transmission was coming in Planetside, and they were asking for a visual. The front window, which doubled as a view screen, brought up the first images. What faced them was what looked like a giant ant wearing gold plate mail armor. Serenity screamed, but Mars was quickly on top of her, trying to keep things from going south. Planetside, the natives seeing this were a bit repulsed. They had never met a race that looked so hideous to them. Serenity calmed down and said, "I am Queen Serenity of the Silver Millennium kingdom and the Sol system. I come in the name of all my people."

The words were coming through, but her mandibles didn't seem to be moving. "I am Queen Matron Kllxr, of our world of Trnx. I would ask an audience with you. I first must ask if our environment is suitable to you."

Mercury said, "The air pressure is one half times thicker than our own, and the gravity is greater, so if you do go, take it easy. The air is breathable."

Serenity then said, "I thank you for your hospitality, and I humbly accept your invitation."

Venus then said, "Shall we prepare to land?"

Serenity thought, and then said, "No, we don't want to rattle things more than we have."

She then said to Kllxr, "We shall prepare a pair of shuttles. Please transmit to us the coordinates for landing."

"I look forward to meeting you face to face," said Kllxr, and the transmission ended. Mars now knew what was going on. "They are speaking through their antennae," she said, "I can hear them in my head."

"Perhaps you should stay here?" said Mercury.

"No, I'll be okay," she said, "I just have to concentrate."

"That poses another problem," said Mercury.

"What's that?" asked Venus.

"In order to communicate with them, we have to devise a way of speaking to them the same way," responded Mercury, "What I can set up is a device that matches their frequencies of personal communication, and when we speak into the translators, it will transmit it to them."

"Make it so," said Venus, "We have a dinner for which to prepare."

The scouts decided to get into their gowns, while Ceres decided to go with his colonial threads, which were the finest clothes he owned. They all entered the shuttle and received a three fighter escort in. As they approached, they observed that the world had two massive continents, and a tropical environment. They penetrated the atmosphere and had to keep their shields up longer for entry in that the area where they would experience the most friction was longer in duration than on Earth. They continued to follow the fighters and before long they were at a coastal region. However, instead of seeing vast buildings and roads, they saw several small pods sticking out of the massive hills that lined the coast. The closer they got, the more they saw them, but they were not as numerous as what would be in a normal city. However, in places that would normally have buildings, there were either tall earth columns or earth domes. They then approached a large earthen dome and a large panel opened up. Once they entered, that is when they saw it all. They saw a vast system of buildings and roads networking everywhere, with craft both on the ground and in the air. What was more amazing was how everything was moving like clockwork. The fighters peeled off, and smaller escort hovercraft approached and led the shuttles in. They then set down on the landing pad, and they were then approached by the welcoming party. They were then amazed at the disparity between those creatures that were of that world. There were about four massive ant-looking creatures forming a square around the group, and they stood about seven feet tall, and all wore matching silver armor. Wearing brown armor over their exoskeletons were those that were no more than four feet tall and seemed to be doting over the one in the middle, who stood at normal human height. By her armor, they knew that this had to be the queen they had seen on the screen. They indeed looked like ants, complete with four arms and two legs upon which they walked, with armor being the clothes that they wore. They looked askance at the boxes, and immediately it started speaking the communications between the ant creatures, at which they stopped, and one came through clearly that said, "Is that our speech in your tongue?"

Mercury stepped up and said, "We learned of your communication as we approached. If the transmission is too strong, please tell us."

The one in the gold's antennae started to twitch and the words came out saying, "No, it's not too strong. How did you figure this out?"

"Our Special Forces commander here, (pointing to Mars,) has psychic abilities, and we realized that you were merely enhancing how you spoke by your own transmitters to us," responded Mercury, "We used our universal translators to figure out your language, though it took a bit for it to figure it out. Once it did, we figured out the frequency by which you talk to each other and attached miniature transmitters to it."

Serenity then spoke and said, "Yet, I do apologize for all this before we formerly introduced ourselves. I, Queen Serenity bring greetings from our people and our king. We are pleased to make your acquaintance."

"I am Queen," she responded, to which Serenity said, "Please, no disrespect is intended, but, do you have a name that goes with your title?"

The queen tilted her head, and then she said, "That is my name."

Mercury started to look at the equipment, and the data that she got back was that "Queen" was the best it could do, because that was her name, and it indeed meant "queen." In other words, her name _was_ her title. Mercury then said, "I apologize, but our machines were misreading it."

She then briefly turned off the transmitter and said, "Just call her 'Queen' and the machine will interpret it."

When she switched it back on, Queen then said, "I find it odd that your first name is the same as mine," which confirmed what they suspected, and Serenity then said, "Well, where we are from, that is a title one can bear, though it is not out of the ordinary for you to have your name as that."

Mercury added, "From the world where I was born, in some of the old tongues of the native lands, people had names that were also their titles. In fact, to help designate people, our kind came up with a second name unique to that person, but no name is without meaning."

The ant creatures began to nod back and forth to one another as the chatter was indistinguishable being that they were all talking at once. Queen then said, "So it is with is, in that, there are several the same occupation, so we must designate. However, there is only one of me; so, whoever holds this spot is called 'Queen.'"

Venus then asked, "Is there a king?"

Chatter went back and forth again, and one of what they had to assume was a soldier spoke up and said, "This is a concept unheard of, but, if you mean 'mate' well, there is an annual competition amongst us solders…" but Queen just reached up and patted his hand and said, "We shall have time for that later. There is much to be learned between our cultures. I suppose we can speak of this as we dine. Welcome to our home world of the Great Mound."

Mercury then switched off the transmitters again and said, "Their language is based off radio transmissions, and there is no way to actually speak it. Everything is going to be descriptions of what it is rather than proper names."

She switched it back on, and Serenity said, "We would be glad to partake of your generous offer of dinner. We are just curious as to what you eat."

"Come and you shall taste of delicacies of which you could only imagine," said Queen in a delighted voice, "I am just curious as to why the one in the red loose armor, (their best description of their dresses,) is so quiet."

Ceres spoke at this point and said, "She is trying to concentrate to keep out all the voices she is hearing."

Queen came over and gently took her by the hand and said, "I understand. This can be an issue for us, which is why each room is designed to block all speech outside of it. Once you get to the dining room, it shall not be as bad."

"Thank you," responded Mars, "Oddly enough, I do hear your speech, and indeed, if I was to speak your tongue out loud, I could not make my tongue say the words, but I am able to make out phonetics of a language. Perhaps, in time, we could learn to put it into a written form."

"Ah, I see," said Queen, "Well, we used to have a written form, but now we keep such records on special solar powered devices that transmit to us anything we wish to record. Yet, come, we can talk of this over dinner. Our food consists of much in the way of grain, beans, and honeydew."

Serenity brightened and said, "Sweets?"

Everyone just smiled and rolled their eyes at which the ant creatures, (Moundians, if you had to give them a name,) were confused, and Mars said, "In our tongue, she would have what we call a sweet tooth: a love for anything sweet."

"Excellent," said Queen, "Then I am sure that what we have will put your home world to shame!"

"I sure hope so!" said Serenity, all excited, and, though they did not yet know it, a great alliance was forming between the Silver Millennium Kingdom and Great Mound.

4


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"_Would you like to play a game?" Joshua from "War Games"_

As they waited for the food, Venus asked, "Why does the thing translate the way it does? I mean, it gave a name for the world—Trnx—and a name for the queen, and now it has stopped."

Mercury said, "It tried to make it a name at first, because of the syntax of the language, but then it realized that the words were difficult to pronounce, and then decided to come as close to what it means."

"So her name is 'Queen Mother Queen'?" asked Serenity.

Mercury thought about it for a minute, and said, "I guess that she is both the queen mother and the queen as well."

It was beginning to make Serenity's head swim, but that went away as the food was presented. What they had is best described as an Indian diet. Mercury, before they started, said to Queen, "Because we are of a different world, we must be sure that what use would not be toxic to us. I am sure you would understand."

"Of course," said Queen, "You have to protect the mother of your kind, do you not?"

The whole "mother-of-your-kind" thing was beginning to throw them off, and they were not sure what all that meant, but before they asked, Mercury said, "That was very understanding of you; thank you for doing so."

She then used her medical scanners and swept them over the table to try to detect their contents. She also took a few samples, and found nothing that would not be welcome in the bodies of humans. In fact, it was very earthlike, but high in fiber and proteins from the lentils. Mercury said, "All clear: let's dig in!"

The scouts, still reflecting their Japanese upbringing, slapped their hands before their faces, exclaiming, "Thank you for the food!" and began to eat. It was interesting to do, though, because the others cut the food with their mandibles, pulling it in with their tongues. This meant that there was no silverware at all. Queen looked at this in wonder, and it was explained that they had to use tools to do what they did. Once that was figured out, kitchen tools were brought out that were bigger than what they would use on Earth, but they managed. Queen then said, "That is an interesting ritual. Were you thanking your Great Spirit?"

"Partly," said Mars, "When our home was just our home world, there were many cultures, and ours would do that before we ate."

"Excellent," said Queen, "That means that you are spiritual people, and that is greatly to be respected."

Ceres then asked, "So, what was it that your soldier was saying earlier?"

"Oh, you mean…" she said, and trailed off, and then she said, "Well, in our culture, there is only one source of our kind, and I was selected to be that one."

Suddenly, "queen mother" made more sense. This was more like the ants of Earth than had first been seen. Queen continued and said, "When the time comes for Mother to leave this place and join the other matrons of history, the healthiest and best of the larvae are selected and fed a special royal jelly that would give them the traits that would allow them to rule well, and breed the next generation."

Jupiter then asked, shocked, "Are you saying that you are the mother of everyone on this world?"

"Well, I am mother of the current generation," Queen responded, "There are others that stem from our last Mother, but they all recognize me as the mother now, as they know well that I am of their and previous generations, so they are essentially family. They would not kill off their sister, and it would do them no good to do so. All that would happen is one of my offspring would come forward and take my place."

"How do you keep that process from being manipulated?" pondered Venus.

"At one time," Queen continued, "There were several mounds on the globe. They fought each other constantly, and there was some manipulation then. However, ever since we have managed to come under one queen, that kind of action is very small. There are pheromones that I emit as queen that keep my people loyal and others because there is something in them that connects them mentally to me. If there is treachery, it is almost impossible to hide, considering the way we communicate. If someone was ever foolhardy enough to either assassinate the queen or try to make his or her own succession by giving the royal jelly to a larva of his or her choosing over the one selected, then two queens shall emerge. Understand that this could happen by an attempted overthrow, or the queen dies naturally, and someone disagrees about the selection. Believe me; it only takes a month to develop the queen. Because of the royal jelly, it allows rapid growth and gaining of intelligence. That is fed into the pupa as it develops so that she will be ready to take over in an instant. However, if there is more than one, the ruler is decided by rite of combat…to the death. The winner shall rule as queen, and all shall accept her. It is rare, but it happens from time to time."

"So, you are the mother of all?" asked Venus.

"Well, I am the mother of most," Queen responded, "The rest are either loyal to me because of their relations to queens past, or because they are indeed my offspring."

"What was this competition that the soldier spoke about?" asked Ceres.

"That is to determine which of them get to be my mate for that year," Queen responded quite casually. They all remained silent, shook by how this culture operated. However, Queen took it to mean that she could continue, and did so. She then said, "It is a six month competition during my non-fertile cycle. It happens all across the Great Mound, and it is a mix of hunting skills, strength, intelligence, combat technique, sports, and so forth. Two weeks before my cycle starts, it is narrowed down to ten. I then personally interview those ten, and spend some social time with them. I mean, I am going to spend a year with that one: I want to be sure we get along, you know. Anyway, it is easier for me at that time, because I become more amorous the closer I get to the cycle. Once one is selected, we perform our duties nightly, as I lay about a thousand eggs a day."

They looked shocked at that, and Queen then said, "Oh, don't worry; they are small when they emerge. I can produce about 180,000 offspring a year."

"How do you take care of all of them?" wondered Serenity in amazement.

"Well, the larvae are determined to be soldier or worker by their genetic traits," answered Queen, "Once that is known, they are then given to a soldier and a worker who is life partnered together. They get at least two for which to care."

"Are you saying that a soldier might have a…well…life partner, as you say," said Mars, "And still that soldier might be your mate?"

"The workers understand the need, and have no problem with that," said Queen, "All workers are female, but they are sterile, and they yet have urges. The soldiers have more urges than the workers, but they do perform the royal duty with one another, even though it would bring no offspring. However, the workers still have matronly feelings, and that aids in raising the young. They form these bonds as larvae, as they interact with each other in certain residential pods, though not out in the general public, considering how fragile they are. They go to school at this time, and their aptitude for a life skill is found here, either as a worker, or a certain skill as a soldier. Just before adolescence, however, they have two days of sick time, and then form a pupa. There they sit for a month, and emerge with an adult body. However, when that happens, whatever their skill was, that is fostered completely, and they begin to learn about how to function in society. Once done, the life partners they formed as larvae are bound permanently, and they then have the chance to raise young themselves. Yet, I love them all, though I cannot always get close to them. So, Serenity, how many offspring to you produce? Or, are you of the kind of being that have many matrons?"

Serenity took it in stride and said, "I am of the second, and my life partner and I have a wonderful daughter!"

"I would then say that you have a complicated system to keep all things in order?" asked a soldier called General.

"I would think that so, General," said Queen, "Though ours must seem complicated to them."

Indeed, Serenity was still trying to wrap her head around it, and it showed on her face. However, Queen said, "No matter; I am certain we can learn of each other in time."

Jupiter then said, "I take it you have alliances as well?"

"Oh yes!" said Queen, "We know of five others, though it will take some time to introduce you the right way. A couple became our friends as you have; others realized it was better to be friends than to fight. Other systems have found out that they could never defeat us."

General spoke up and said, "That brings up another point. If we are to ally with you, we need to know how you would stand alongside us if we needed to work as one on the battlefront. The two that joined with us peaceably did so with some combat exercises."

Venus then said, "It sounds fine, but it would take some time to bring most of our fleet here."

Ceres then said, "What if we do a joint exercise? Why not have a few of your vessels work with ours, and then we could have my company of Marines, and Princess Admiral Jupiter's shore police work against your solders in a combat exercise? At least that way we could get the ball rolling until it was more convenient to have much larger exercises."

General looked at Queen, and she said, "Could that be done?"

"I will ask Admiral of the Fleet and see what he could provide," said General.

"I am the fleet admiral of my people," said Venus, "I shall speak with him and see how we shall do this."

Queen then said, "That will be very good for building camaraderie between our two worlds. We always know that those that can stand strong with us will stand strong and trusted behind us."

Serenity then said, "And then, we can have our three celebrities give a music show!"

Jupiter, Ceres, and Venus all rolled their eyes as Serenity said, "What?"

"You just love to get them singing, don't you?" asked Mars.

"Oh she was a fan girl back then," said Mercury, "You should have seen the record collection she had."

This was the first that they others had heard that, and they all looked at Serenity knowingly, who then just turned red and sheepish. Queen said, "Is your queen ill? Why did she turn all red?"

"It's okay, your majesty," said Mercury, "It is just an inside joke. You see, Jupiter, Venus, and Ceres here were once entertainers before they became what they are. They played music and sang."

Queen became excited, and she said, "Oh, we would be delighted to enjoy the frequencies of their work."

It took Mercury a minute to figure out what Queen meant by that, but then she said, "Okay, well, we can have our science team figure out a way to have it so you can enjoy them in your way, and the crew of our ship can enjoy them in our way."

With that, they finished eating, and then dessert was brought out. Serenity, which had surprised the Moundians with her bottomless pit, astounded them even more when she ate like a piranha once she tasted their honeydew sweets. Her eyes rolled back into her head in ecstasy, and she just could not get enough. Queen said, "Um…your queen…um…eats well."

Mars laughed and said, "You don't know the half of it!"

Admiral met with Venus, and when they realized that the _Artemis_ was a battleship, they decided to set it up with two of their heavy cruisers, about five light cruisers, about eight destroyers, and a squadron of fighters. Next, Venus explained about the armament on her ship, and they decided that, because her guns used electromagnetic pulse to propel the projectile, they decided to just fire them without the shells. Venus then said that she would still have them use something that weighed the same, but would disintegrate on contact with their shielding system so that her sailors could get used to actually going through the routine of loading and firing. They would then greatly tone down the particle accelerators for broadsides and anti-fighter protection. It was then that she learned that his ships used disruptors, and that they would be toned down to just take down the shields, and then just enough for the computers on board _Artemis_ to record hits and simulate damage statistics. Meanwhile, it would be the Greenbacks and the Marines against a battalion of General's soldiers, and decided upon a game of "Capture the Flag." The rogue factor would be Mars' SEAL team, as Ceres explained that they were a part of the Navy's elites, and they specialized in asymmetrical warfare. The soldiers of the Mound then showed them the gear they used to record hits, and all of Ceres', Jupiter's, and Mars' personnel had their weapons set the same way. Hand-to-hand, however, would be different. The Moundians then said that they were able to rig their small arms to be padded for that sake in case they fought that way, but they told the Millennium forces that their armor, combined with their exoskeletons, could absorb their blows. In both locations, it was explained that those of the Great Mound had never been defeated in combat. If that were true, then all of them realized that they must be a benevolent race, for they could have conquered most of this quarter of the galaxy by that point. Once the rules were set, they exercise commenced.

On the ground, a mix of terrain was set, and the Millennium forces were allowed to familiarize themselves with the fighting area to make it more of a fair fight, and three heads got together to form battle plans. It was decided that the Marines would go head on and keep them busy while the Greenbacks would hit from the flanks. However, the SEALs would go do what they did best, and circumvent the entire fight. They would be paired with the recon platoon, who would spearhead and get a feel for what was guarding the flag. They would then engage that force while the SEALs would sneak up and take the flag and head back with it. The recon platoon would then do what they could to escort the flag back. A platoon of Marines and Greenbacks were left at their flag. The flag, in each case, was what both sides would have called their unit colors, and because much in cool points were to be lost if that was stolen, there was more impetus on protecting them. Jupiter and Ceres would stay in the command shelter tracking the action, calling the shots while Mars was more to stay with her people. It was just her way. In orbit, the _Artemis_ and the other ships were talking strategy. Venus explained their tactics, and one called Commodore began to adapt that with their own. However, Venus was seemingly letting Commodore call the shots, because, though her crew had been through many simulations, this was actually the first time they ever did live fire exercises, (of what she knew, being unaware that the fleet had already been blooded against the Gnarl.) Still, she knew that this would be a great test for her crew. All this was being watched by Queen, and by Serenity, for whom they brought out a special throne for her in her honor. Luna was with Serenity, while Artemis was on board his namesake, wanting to see the action first hand. The Moundians were amused at seeing such small and sentient creatures, and just took it in stride in learning about their new potential allies. With that, the games commenced.

On the ground, all the troops, (wearing the transparent steel armor painted in camouflage,) were making their way along, but they did not like things. They had yet to see anything happening, and they did not like how their eyes were being used by the SEALs in their effort. Ceres saw that, and called a halt and told them to find cover for the moment. By the looks on the holograph map, they were too far ahead, and he was afraid their opponents were looking to let them slip by. He then started to scan the skies and area. There was nothing. It was then it began to dawn on him that there was one contingency they had not taken into account, and, considering what they were dealing with, it was something with which he should have reconciled with before going forward. This was something that he figured out too late. The Moundians had their scouts watch the actions of the Greenbacks, (similarly clad as the Marines,) and then prepared to strike them in their special way. Yet, Ceres quickly grabbed his pistol and told Jupiter, "Get the rear guard ready! There is an attack imminent—_right here!_"

She wanted to ask why, but she also knew her husband's instincts were keen, and she learned not to question them. She sounded the alert, and Ceres saw how they were forming. He then said, "No! Get on the walled defenses, and alternate: one looking in and one looking out!"

They did as they were told as Ceres took a commanding position on the parapet with Jupiter. He then said, "Have your special attacks ready."

"Where are they coming from?" she asked.

"From the last place any of us would have thought," said Ceres, "and from the first place we should have considered!"

Just as he said that, the ground shook as several holes opened up around the area, and a couple inside the protected area in which their flag set, and up came what could best be described as drilling tanks, followed by Moundians a blazing with their simulated disruptor rifles. At that same moment, at the flanks, the same thing happened, and the Greenbacks scattered in confusion. Transmissions were coming from all around, asking for help. They had been caught flat footed!

In space, however, because of the cooperation, Venus was readier than her planet-bound counterparts. Mercury was having her science team run all kinds of simulations and scenarios to give Venus an idea of where to go with things. In addition, as a side exercise, she suggested that, if the results of fighting gave casualties, she could have those crew pretend to be hurt, and have her medical teams practice in that kind of a situation. Scanners were now alerting them to an approach of the enemy, and Mercury said, "They are using attack pattern 16 Foxtrot!"

"Bring it up on tactical!" said Venus, and indeed, the enemy was moving up fast. However, the one thing that the _Artemis_ had going for it that the Moundian battleship did not was range. The _Artemis_ could hit from a long way out, and Venus planned to use that. Commodore said, "Shall we scramble the fighters?"

"Yes," said Venus, but she gave him an attack pattern he had not seen. When he asked why, she said, "You don't want them hit, do you?"

He gave the command, but he then asked, "What do you mean by that?"

A smirk curled over her lips and she said, "Watch! FORWARD BATTERIES: LOCK ON TARGETS AND FIRE"

The crew loaded the simulated rounds and had the chain ready to go. Because the gun decks were in space, moving them was no effort for the machinery. They whipped around and started firing rapidly. Because it was electromagnetic pulse, there was no recoil: the rounds were thrown rather than pushed. This was the first time they had been fired in space, and it was a spectacular sight! Earth tests had not been able to show the beauty of it as well as this. The fighters racing out to meet the enemy fighters and then the attacking flotilla were suddenly grateful that they had been told to take that pattern, or else they may have been destroyed for real! Venus and Mercury started their attack on the smaller vessels first, considering that the smaller vessels could swarm them as their big ones could pound them from distance. They wanted to reverse that on their attacking foes. In the meantime, Mercury was recording the fighters, hoping to transmit that to Princess Usagi in hopes that they could learn from it and use it. After a few volleys, about five destroyers had to pull out, and one light cruiser was simulated to have taken heavy damage. The Moundians could not believe that such firepower was possible. However, by this point, a part of each squadron had managed to slip through, and they were attacking their respective targets. The 40mm anti-fighter PA, (particle accelerator,) cannons were pumping flak into the area. At this, the other ships were taking position and attacking, doing what they could to take advantage of the numbers. By this point, the other battleship was engaging the _Artemis_, and the fighters were keeping them busy. At this point, it seemed like an even fight, but Commodore and Venus seemed to be working in good sync. However, _Artemis _was taking light to moderate damage, and the casualty reports started to come in. Once that happened, the "casualties" were being treated, and Mercury was swiftly collecting the data for a proper after actions review. Then the computer shut down the upper front battery after a simulated shield breach. Now they had problems!

Planetside, the fight around the flag was furious. They had done the unexpected, and now it seemed like a lost cause. If they lost their flag, they knew the enemy would take it underground. Once there, it would be foolish to follow, because they would be on a ground they were far more familiar with, and it would be over for them. However, Jupiter said, "If that's the way they want to play…"

"Careful!" screamed Ceres, knowing what she intended, "You might kill them!"

"Don't worry!" she said, grinning like a Cheshire cat, "I have something in mind!"

She then saw the tanks approaching, and she called out, "SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

She heaved several of her electric attack, and when they hit, they stopped dead in their tracks. The static had fried the circuits in the machines, causing them to stop dead in their tracks. The Moundians inside now scrambled out, having gotten a good shock, after which Ceres caught the hint and fired Meteor Shower at their feet, kicking up all kinds of dust around them. The troops took advantage of this and closed in on them. On the outside, the other Moundians were gaining the wall, and it turned into brutal hand-to-hand fighting. Ceres had his saber out, clashing with the foe, but the tide was turning. In the woods, the Marines, who were near the open ground, (where they really did not want to fight,) split in two, but decided to try to flank the attackers. They engaged, and both sides were taking heavy casualties. Yet, this did work the same effect that Mars had wanted.

Mars and her SEALs, wearing camouflage, but forgoing the armor because they wanted the ability to move swifter and quieter, were swiftly making their way to the enemy flags. They saw the encampment in the middle and the woods around it. She then gave command for the SEALs to conceal themselves in the woods and for the recon to do a quick frontal attack and then melt back into the woods. Once in position, this is what happened, and the Moundians started a heavy repulse. Quickly, the recon platoon melted back into the forest as they were chased by a smaller detachment, which then seemed to vanish off the radar screen. It was then quite—too quiet for the Moundians' comfort. At that, simulated grenades were lobbed in, and in the confusion, the SEALs attacked. They were running full speed, but they were deadly accurate despite the running. A few Moundian troops jumped on their artillery pieces, but they were in for the shock of their lives! If they could hear things in a normal, audible fashion, they would have heard screamed out "BURNING MANDALA!" Rings of flames hit the pieces, causing them to melt, and the Moundians to spill out over the edges in terror. They had breached the perimeter, but as they were trying to deal with that, a scream came from their command tent, shouting, "RECON!" and they were making off with the guideon. When the Moundians went to face this, their foes seemed to disappear like ghosts. The commander their transmitted loudly, "Go after them!"

As the two monarchs watched, Serenity began to realize why she despised war so much. As she watched troops from both sides, as well as ships pull out, knowing that they would have really been dead in an actual fight, she began to shed a tear or two. Queen saw that and said, "Your eyes are leaking! What is wrong?"

She sucked it up and said, "I am so glad this isn't real. I could not stand to watch people die."

Queen said, "Is that the spirit of a warrior? I thought a queen like you…"

Serenity jumped in and said, "I am a warrior when I have to be, but, if I can solve it where no one gets hurt, or with little fight, then I would rather it that way. Think about it: how many of your larvae will have no fathers to take care of them."

"This is something that they are taught from an early age: war is a part of our life," Queen responded, "We have peace because we are always ready for war. They understand that it comes at a price. Because they love their homes so much, they are willing to sacrifice like that. Do not your warriors think that way?"

"Well, yes and no," said Serenity, "But I remember General Ceres—the one in the green jacket—told me something that made me wonder things. He is a Marine. He teaches his fighters that they are ministers of death thirsting for war. Yet, he said to me that it would be better not to fight. When I asked him, he told me that a great general from his homeland once said that no one prays for peace more than the soldier, because it is he that must bear the deepest wounds and scars of war."

Queen thought about that, and she then said, "That seems like he has a weakness in his bravery."

"Oh no!" said Serenity, "He is brave enough! He told me that he gets around that by thinking about what would happen if he lost: he says that he thinks about his wife, and me and my family. The rest is easy."

Queen understood that, and then she said, "Then indeed he has a strong character. I would be honored for him to stand alongside my commanders!"

"All my friends are like that," she said, "That's how I know that I can fight if I have to: they will always be right by my side."

With that, they began to watch the fight.

They were now racing through the woods with the guideon, and ran smack into the fight on the right flank. The sight was bad: both sides had many off to the sides as simulated deaths, and there was not many left clashing. Mars shouted, "YOU WERE TRAINED FOR THIS! SUCK IT UP AND DRIVE ON, FROGMEN!"

They shook it off, and then saw the holes that had been created by the drill tanks, and Mars said, "Into the holes!"

"Won't that play into their hands?" one of her men shouted.

"They can't hear us, and it is the last thing they would expect!" Mars shouted back, and they then jumped in. When the Moundians saw them rush in with the guideon, they were calling for pursuit, but the remainder of Marines and Greenbacks took advantage of that by counterattacking. The Moundians were in disarray, never having taken a lashing like this before. Before the last of them "fell," he called to the left flank to break off and chase. However, by that point, recon and the SEALs were at the cross points, trying to figure out where to go. Pulling out a compass, hoping that the poles of that world gave a correct reading, a recon trooper was trying to make a determination. He pointed to the left, but Mars said, "No, the one next to it: it's the straightest. They must have counterattacked the base. Let's go!"

As they started, they began to face their pursuers. Immediately, the SEALs started a rearguard action while recon plowed forward.

At the Marine base, it was a brutal fight, but somehow, a Moundian soldier managed to snatch the guideon and started to head for the tunnel. "TSUNAMI ATTACK," shouted Ceres as he cast it at the feet of the fleeing soldier. He fell, and the guideon went up into the air, only to be caught by another who went into the hole. He wanted to pursue, but they were too deeply engaged in the fight. That's when he heard, "FIRE SOUL!" and watched the soldier rocket out of the hole as a fireball flew past him. This was followed by recon platoon coming out of the hole, as the SEALs were finishing off the rearguard. One of the recon troopers picked up the company's guideon and replanted it as they planted the Moundian flag beside it, screaming, "RECON!"

This was followed by all the Marines calling out "SEMPER FI!"

It was a costly fight on both sides, but the Marines and Navy on the ground carried the day.

In space, the _Artemis_ was now frantically fighting off the attack they were facing. By that point, they had taken moderate damage, and they were the only one left. However, the other force had taken it hard as well, and they were down to their battleship and heavy cruiser, but it was still two against one, and heavy guns. It was then that Venus remembered something from her simulation tests, and she then said, "Spin 90 degrees, drop straight down, and full broadside on the battleship with whatever we have left!"

They were being closed in on from both sides, and the two attacking vessels were expecting the surrender to be called. However, they were surprised to see the _Artemis_ make that maneuver, and then they had to do some serious maneuvering themselves to keep from colliding. As soon as they were parallel, the _Artemis_ opened up with a full broadside. In simulation, the heavy cruiser was destroyed, and then the battleship followed an instant after when the damaged was assessed from the broadside, and the "exploding" ship right next to them. If it had been a real fight, the _Artemis_ would have had to spend a lot of time in dry dock, but they were the only survivor. Venus slacked up in the conn and let out a heavy sigh. "I'm glad we don't do that every day!" she exclaimed.

Artemis jumped into her lap and said, "I think we passed the test, and I think we learned a lot. You should be proud of the crew."

"I am," she responded, "I just hope that war is something that happens few and far in between."

"Amen," was all he could think to say.

Planetside, Serenity saw what had happened and jumped up. Luna went flying, all surprised, as Serenity shouted, "WAY TO GO! THAT'S THE WAY TO DO IT!"

She started to spin her arm and bark, and then suddenly remembered herself, and sat shamefacedly. She then said, real quiet, "I'm sorry."

Queen then laughed and said, "Had we won, I would have been joyous as well."

Her tone went a touch melancholy, and she said, "Still, this is also a harsh day for us as well. This is the first time any of our military has ever faced defeat in any form, be it a war game or not."

"Well, know that you hurt us bad to do it," Serenity, attempting to be consoling.

"True," responded Queen, "The one thing I can say then is that, to have you as a friend would be the greatest thing that ever happened to us."

She stood up as Serenity did and tenderly embraced her with all four arms. Serenity returned the gesture, and suddenly, neither one looked so hideous to one another anymore. Queen then said, "Welcome to the family, for we can now be as one!"

"Then we can celebrate tonight, after they all finish their after actions reviews," said Serenity, "LET'S PARTY!"

If Queen had been physically capable of it, she would have been smiling at the endearing soft mother of her people.

6


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"_You can't say that civilization isn't advancing, however, for in __every war they find a new way to kill you__." Will Rogers._

Each side gathered together for after actions reviews, and Ceres spoke first by saying that he had to take some blame. He should have taken into account the underground attack, and that cost them greatly. However, he had great praise for their ability to adapt to the situation as it had presented itself. The only flawless thing about the day was the SEALs and the reconnaissance platoon. They did their jobs to perfection. The other thing that was noted was that they had not adapted their fighting styles to take on larger and stronger opponents. When they hit hand-to-hand, they hit with tremendous force. Many of the casualties fell because of that factor. If it were not for the stealth units getting the goal, indeed they would have been annihilated. Thus, the training had to be adapted to face foes like that. Indeed, because of where the Moundians sprung, their strength was immense. What this meant that, because they could never be that strong, either training had to be more strength and agility training, or there had to be a way to come up with a battle suit that allowed them to be as strong as their strongest foe or ally. The Moundians had been so used to mopping up their opponents quickly that they had grown lax in dealing with a foe that could outthink you and not have their inferior strength be a weakness. Speed and strength was important, but what was better was taking one's time to be sure that you knew better what you faced, even if that be on the battlefield. That way, you could adapt quicker as their opponents had. Yet, with them on their side, they could use that strength, and the pair combined could always produce something greater than the sum of its parts.

In space, Commodore sat in with the _Artemis_ on their review, seeing that he and his ships had worked with her. The one thing that Venus mentioned was that she was in awe of the swiftness of the vessels against which they had fought. She feared that that could be the Achilles' heel of the fleet. However, Commodore said to her that what they lacked in speed they made up for in shielding and firepower. In addition to that, he had also said that she was wise for remembering that, in space, one must think in three dimensions when it comes to maneuvering for an attack, and that ships can thus maneuver in such a way that could not be achieved in a gravity environment. For those in the ship, even if the ship was spinning, though they may feel the force of it, they will always have the perspective of being upright as opposed to everything else. He also told her that, because the ship could fight in the waters of a planet, they had a perspective on combat that few others had. Because they could fight on the sea, in space, or in the atmosphere in a limited sense, it made them strong. He figured that both sides might annihilate each other due to the fact that only one ship was different than the others, but the factor was the rogue ship. It was the only survivor despite the pounding it would have taken for real. He knew that both fleets combined could stomp anything in their way. As a result of the successful games, a banquet was called for by Queen, and she asked if it were possible that Serenity's chefs could contribute. They could create some good vegetarian dishes from all over the Earth, and perhaps introduce them to something that they may enjoy that they could not at that point. They were not meat eaters, and it was unknown what meat would do to them. However, they explained to Queen that they had a bean called Soy that could be made into something called Tofu, and it could simulate meat. They could thus flavor it, and have them be able to eat it without hurting them.

While the plans for that were coming in, they set up a holographic meeting with King Endymion so they could work out the details of a treaty between the two worlds. The Senate had been informed of the happenings, and they had already debated and gave approval for a treaty to be approved once they agreed that the terms were satisfactory. This would speed the process up greatly. However, unlike the other one, this one was being made public across the Sol system as the first sentient race of people that Earth had ever met, much less formed an alliance. No one knew of the secret one because of the security that had to be maintained while information was being gathered in that regard. Until they had that worked out, and until the _Artemis_ returned from its first exploratory mission, nothing really could be said. Too much was at stake. After about four hours of working out the details with the governments of both worlds, and coming up with a plan that was suitable for Sol and the Epsilon Eriandi system, the Sol Senate came back with approval. A copy was faxed to Endymion, and signed on interplanetary television as one of the most historic events of human history. That day was to be known forever as Alliance Day, when the Silver Millennium Kingdom reached to a people outside the system, and joined with them in peace. In the kingdom, there would be celebrations the next day, but the party was going to start on Great Mound that night.

By this point, the _Artemis_ was welcomed to land on the planet's surface now that it was no longer seen as a threat. Some briefings were given about the culture there, and what some of the faux pas were to avoid. They would be given personal communicators that would be rigged into the ship's computer so that they could converse with anyone that they met. Thus, the port of call became a liberty call. However, Queen suggested that they should yet be guided, and they were set in groups of five with a soldier and a worker to make sure that things went smoothly. A swift camaraderie built between the Marines and Greenbacks with the soldiers, while the other sailors were set with naval personnel of Great Mound. It soon became evident, though, where the interests of the humans fell, as they further broke up as to where the women went with the workers, and the men went with the soldiers. The men showed them to things that typically interest men for the most part, while the women gravitated to the fashion of the land. Since all wore armor on Great Mound, that was all the women had to choose from in fashion, though the men were into it for other reasons. After an acceptable exchange rate was set, a type of battle armor was purchased by the men that were specially designed for them to wear. When word of this came back to Mercury, she said for one of the men to come to her once the banquet and concert was over, and they could see about the power enhancement being put in such armor. She even figured that she could work with the scientists of Great Mound to address that issue. The women got the armor for that reason, and because it was the fashion on that world anyway. One of the designers saw the uniforms of the women, and devised an armor that went well with the fuku design of the ladies' uniforms, colored in the navy blue that they wore. For ground troops, a woodland design was made along with a suit for formal occasions. When it came time for the banquet, many decided on wearing the armor. While it was a bit against regulations to wear such in an official function as that, because it went with the uniforms they wore, and because the Moundians felt highly complimented and honored because of that, it was overlooked.

By the time the banquet started, the night had fallen and displayed a spectacular night sky that no one from the Millennium kingdom could have ever envisioned. Because all the lights of the city were underground, there was no light pollution. As a result, the sky was emblazoned with stars. Because they were also close to the two asteroid belts around the star of that system, they combined to create a bright band across the sky, along with the arm of the Milky Way that could be seen from there as it crossed the other way behind it. This was combined with the ring that orbited the planet, making for quite a sight. In addition to this, because the comet belt around the star was so vast—many times bigger than Sol's—there was always at least three comets or so in the night sky, and they had said that there had been as many as 12 in the sky at one time with varying degrees of brightness. Mercury then asked if it was a worry about a possible collision with the planet. She was told that there was evidence of that happening once, but it was the equivalent of many centuries ago, maybe even Millennia away. In fact, there was evidence that there was a developing sentient race of beings not unlike their own on the planet before the Moundians came along. The greatest proof of this came when excavations for city building dug up an entire village not three Earth weeks before the _Artemis_ had arrived. They knew that they were going to have a couple more Earth days there, so Mercury wanted the opportunity to go through that site with her science team if she could. Not only could they help the Moundians to study things, but they could also learn about how such things could be survived, considering that Earth had had its own catastrophe that they managed to survive, and that learning how to avoid things like that from happening again would be beneficial.

The banquet was a smashing success, and the Moundians loved the tofu "meat," loving the flavors of it, feeling like their race may be missing something. Of course, their systems were not designed to digest meat, so this was as close as they could come. After that, the ARK Juban Trio started their concert. They played about three sets, but as they were wrapping up their last set, a message was coming in from one of the picket ships that there was an unknown vessel coming into the system, and it was severely crippled, sending out distress signals. Queen and Serenity both slipped away so as not to cause a panic and began to talk to the picket vessel. With the aid of the universal translators of Serenity's people, they could communicate, and they were begging for help!

Olympia was now in what they would later learn to be the Gnarl home system. Mirini kept her close, but she also knew that the auction block followed. She was worried that her and her ersatz foster kitten stood a chance to be separated, but she was relieved when the slaver decided to sell them as a pair. Because they were both female and healthy, they were put up as two potential house servants. Yet, there were those in the crowd that had other ideas. There were pimps in the audience, as well as mine leaders, plantation operators, amongst other things. Because of their appearance, the bidding was fast and furious. However, it whittled itself down to two that both seemed to be well to do. It turned out that one was the owner of one of the best producing mines in that region of the galaxy, and the other was someone that worked in the royal house. The mine had a reputation of having a high turnover rate, which really translated into a high death rate for its workers, and as a result, neither Mirini nor Olympia wanted to know just what that entailed. Soon, it came to a bidding competition, and it seemed that egos were on the line as well. The mine owner wanted to flaunt what kind of power he thought he had, and really had none compared to the vast wealth into which the other could tap. It was not so much that the royal man really wanted to spend that much on a slave or two, but it was that he just wanted to put this one in his place. Finally, the mine owner gave up in disgust and they were given over to the man who worked in the royal house. He came up and looked them over, and he said, "They will both make excellent maids in the house. You, what's your name," addressing Olympia.

"Her name is Prr'ann," answered Mirini, "And she is a mute."

"Hmm, they didn't tell me this," he responded, "However, it could be good, though. She won't ever be able to talk back or refuse an order. Well, you both seem healthy enough. Nonetheless, you will both be given brief medical exams, be bathed, and sent for training for royal service."

He handed them over to one of his subordinates, who beckoned them to follow. This one was a bit harsher, but Mirini knew that life would be better for them, and things would not be as harsh, though disobedience still meant harsh punishment. Yet, Olympia was, in her mind, celebrating. She could not believe her luck! She could send the outer scouts a signal and have them slip in unseen, working in the shadows as she worked in the open. She was also grateful that the medical team made her disguise as such that it would not be detected that she was not a Nekonian. It was, in truth, a form of plastic surgery, but not as such that it could not be reversed.

They were put on the ship with the others that had been bought, and they were all told that they would be going to the Gnarl home world and put into service to the royal house. They would be examined, cleaned, clothed appropriately, and put into training. They were also told, both harshly and smugly, that they should feel honored and lucky that they were going to get far better treatment than other slaves, so they had better act like they were grateful for their "salvation" and not get ideas, or else the punishment would be harsh. Mirini then said, "Worry not, little one, it will get better, and we can support each other."

Olympia nodded and smiled as the two settled in for the trip in. It was not going to be at warp speed because they were in the system, but the trip would take a bit of time. Olympia, however, waited until everyone was asleep, and the guards were near that way, slipped to the floor from her seat, and turned on the scrambler to her communicator so her signal would not be picked up.

"_Catfish, _this is Olympia, come in," she whispered.

"Commander Pluto here," she said, to which Olympia shushed her, and then looked to see if she had been heard. No one was moving, so she said, "I'm right in the heart of things on a slaver heading right to the royal house itself."

"We're trying to trace you now," whispered Pluto, who looked at the data banks, and then she said, "We have the shuttle you are on now. What is your status?"

"I have befriended one of the Nekonians, and we have both been put as slaves in the royal house itself!" exclaimed Olympia as best she could, considering the situation. Pluto thought for a moment or two, and she said, "Get yourself established, and we shall be in geosynchronous orbit over you. Get a lay of the land as best you can and transmit back at that point. We'll go from there."

"I have to find a way to make sure the stuff you gave me gets transferred to the clothes they plan to give us," stated Olympia, "I'll do my best."

"If you cannot keep it, find what you can planetside, even if you have to escape to do it," responded Pluto, "That is the last resort. It stands a chance to endanger your companion."

"Then she comes with me," responded Olympia, "Trust me: it's a pledge I made."

"Just don't let that jeopardize the mission," stated Pluto, "Remember: one slip-up, and there will be no way to retrieve you, and we shall have to bug out."

"Understood," she answered, and then heard movement. One of the guards was making his rounds, and Olympia said, "I have to go, be prepared to receive the next transmission planetside."

"Roger, out," said Pluto, and she hoped that this woman had the wherewithal to handle this. Too much rode on her success.

Olympia was concealing her communicator as the guard was walking down the aisle. It was then that he noticed the empty seat, and he immediately went over to check out what was going on. Certainly, there was no escaping that ship, but there was always the possibility that the Nekonians planted a saboteur on the ship, so they still had to keep tabs on them, even if that just meant making a show of force for them to remember just who was in charge. He came up to the spot, and found Olympia with her head on the lap of Mirini, paws folded under her head, purring contently, seemingly asleep. The guard just shook his head and moved on. Olympia watched him with an open eye for a moment until he was gone, and then let out a sigh. "That was a close one," she thought, "I have to be more careful."

She waited until the guard was actually back to his post before slipping back into her seat. She figured a little shut eye would help here, because she knew she was going to need all the energy that she could get.

2


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

"_The enemy of my enemy is my friend," often used by President George Bush Senior._

The foreign craft had the appearance and markings that would remind someone of a great bird of prey. It was about the size of a light cruiser, and by the looks of it, it could fight. However, it was also an exploration vehicle as described by the occupants of it. Like the _Artemis,_ this ship was also out looking for new worlds and systems, but ran into a snag. However, at that point, Mercury and Serenity said for that to wait, and told them that they would tend to their medical needs first. They could tell their story later. In the meantime, arrangements were to be made to send medical teams to their ship. After some discussions, they found that the wounded ship had an atmosphere mix of more carbon dioxide in their air than what humans were used to, but it was not fatal. Thus, Mercury told everyone to work slowly and carefully, as the air mix might mess with their though patterns a bit until they had acclimatized. Once on board, they quickly discovered that this was a race of birds that came from the raptor side of things. They were human enough in appearance, except that they had wings, but hands and digits on the top crook of the wing. They wore no tops, as their feathers made for their covering. They did wear kilt-like bottoms through which their tail feathers could extend with no problems, and form fitting helmets that seemed to depict some kind of job or rank structure. Their talons were exposed, and they proved adept at using them as well as their hands, and often seemed to prefer the use of them more. Their faces were avian as well, but they had developed a speech with their tweeting, clicks, and chirps that seemed to effect a phonetic feel to it. They called themselves Zoarians, being that their home world was named Zoar, and they indeed considered themselves a proud warrior race. Mercury then told them to start looking up proper care for birds, and amplify some of those things to take care of the wounded. They had hollow bones, which meant that they were also capable of flight, and they took all this into account. Unlike the Moundians, they were nearly strict carnivores, but who also seemed to mix berries and small fruits in with their diet. They were thus fed as they were tended to. Once things began to come under control, the captain of the ship met with Queen and Queen Serenity, along with Commodore and Venus, to get the full story of what had happened.

The captain, a hen named Scleea, explained where she was from, and that was determined to be 61 Cygni alpha. They were on an exploration mission, and they were in the vicinity of a star known to Earth as Delta Pavoins. They had come to learn that the star had a spacefaring race, but because the nature of the star was such that it was ceasing its fusing hydrogen into helium, it was becoming a red giant, slowly but surely. Indeed, that would take some time, but enough change had happened as to where their planet was starting to die, and they were in the process of evacuating the planet. When we had heard this, we had compassion on them, and we knew of an uninhabited world around a planet in the binary partner of 61 Cygni alpha. Because the stars were far enough apart, the tidal forces would not tear the worlds apart, but it did make for what could best be described as irregular seasons. In the same way that Earth has spring and neap tides, so they had "spring" and "neap" seasons. With a bit of adaptation, they could have moved. She then continued, "However, before we could communicate with them, a massive battle fleet arrived. They were cylindrical shaped ships, but wavy. As we monitored the communications, this invading fleet immediately called for the surrender of this world, but they said in return that they could have the planet, because it was dying anyway. They said that they were fleeing the dying star to settle somewhere else. Instead of being satisfied, the invaders then said that this race would then make good slaves. They begged and pleaded to be let go, for they had suffered enough already, but the invaders would not have it. They called for their immediate surrender, but when the fleeing race tried to do just that, the invaders cut them off. This race of beings did not have the weapons and defenses to fight such a fleet, and we felt obligated to intervene, even if only to get a few ships to safety. We are a warrior race ourselves, and some would consider us to be a race of conquest. Yet, we only do this when someone proves they have no peaceful intentions, and when that is clear, we not only defeat them, we take them over completely to ensure that something like that never happens again. We then absorb them into our culture. Even we would not stoop to attacking a much weaker race than us who were only concerned about the safety of their kind, and had done no wrong to the attacker. While we engaged, our intelligence people recorded as much of the transmissions as they could to find out who they were. However, they transmitted to us to stay out of the fight, or they would consider it a declaration of war against them. We shot back that they were now enemies anyway, and that the enemy of our enemy was thus our allies, and therefore we were obligated to defend them. Yet, we only hoped to get a few away, but we were cut off and stopped. They pounded on us, but we barely escaped. They wiped out the entire race of beings! Our blood boils now against these beings that call themselves the Gnarl. We have no idea where they may be at, but once we find out, we shall fall on them with all our might, and ensure that their evil is stopped once and for all!"

The others sat silent, not sure what to think. There was no reason to think that her story was not true, and both Venus and Serenity wondered if the counterintelligence of their own world had ever detected anything even remotely like that approaching the Earth or the kingdom. Serenity then said, "I am going to call my husband and tell him what has happened. Perhaps he can shed some light on this. In the meantime, we shall get you back to your home world—you, and your gallant crew."

Scleea was grateful, as Serenity said, "My deepest apologies, your majesty, but there is a cause, and we must tend to it."

Queen understood, and the crew as called to alert. Liberty call was over, and now it was time to go to work.

The _Catfish_ soon found itself orbiting a world around a star that, on their charts that only had a letter and number designation: CD-36 13940. It was a K-class star, meaning that any habitable planets would have to be closer to the parent star than for those around a G-class. The system itself was filled with many warships, with many shuttles racing back and forth between them, giving and indication that this fleet was ready for battle at any time. The transmissions that they were hearing were that they had just returned from a successful conquest, that an entire world was annihilated, and that the spoils were great. The crew of the _Catfish_ and the outer scouts listened in solemn silence, anger beginning to boil in their veins, knowing that this new enemy had nothing but conquest on their minds, and not one shred of mercy. They did not know if it was their leaders that were so ruthless, or if the entire race of the Gnarl were just as harsh. They were hoping to find out.

On the planet's surface, the new servants were marched off the ship and led to a staging area. There, they were marched into what looked like locker rooms, and they served that purpose somewhat. Yet, they were told to strip and stow their clothes in a locker. Knowing that she did not want to lose the transmitter and translator, she quickly and discreetly took it off and hid it under the lockers out of sight. She then put the clothes in the locker as told, and it was then she realized that they were not making a distinction between male and female. Indeed, they all looked a bit conscious about this as they were marched off to a bathing area and given what they needed for that purpose. Considering that she could not understand them at this point, she just watched the others for clues in what to do. Once the shower was done, she was brought to the medical area, and they were checked at one time, being treated no better than a herd of horses. Once all those that were deemed needing quarantine for a time were separated out, they were marched back around to the room in which they stared, and they were then maneuvered to the lockers that now held the clothes that marked the jobs for which they were bought. The maid outfits, oddly enough, did not look too dissimilar to the kinds of outfits that maids of the Victorian era on earth would have worn. As she dressed, she once again retrieved the device and started to attach it. However, one of the guards grew suspicious, and now she had to hurry, but do so without being detected that she was trying to conceal the wire. She made her way through the crowd to a mirror and made like she was making some adjustments. She had just concealed things under the artificial fur when he came up. He looked her over, and finding nothing suspicious, just grunted and said, "You Nekonians are always so vain about appearances: but you can't fix ugly!" and gave her a shove in the back as he walked on. She only thought, _"You're one to talk about ugly, rat face!"_

The maids were called for, and they were put under the care of an elder Nekonian who had been there for some time. In private, she told them that she had no love for the Gnarl, but that she had to do what she had to do in order to stay alive. She, therefore, was strict in what she did, but it was only for two reasons: to stay alive herself, and to give her underlings what it would take to insure that they did not face a fate worse than death for failure. Thus, none should take anything personally, and that, sometimes, in order to best survive, one had to wear two faces. Olympia then thought, "_You don't know the half of it!_"

With that, they were being led around the royal mansion…if you could call it a mansion. They actually tunneled in and made their homes inside the landscape as if they were Pueblo Indians. However, that did not mean that things were primitive. They, in fact, looked quite advanced, and yet very basic in things—not very stylish. Yet, looking around, Olympia was trying to assess how easy it would be to invade this world. They could tunnel in to the mountainside, which would make it incredibly difficult to get them out without great cost of life—either on their side, or civilians getting caught in the crossfire. Despite that, she began to try to gauge weaponry, defensive positions, and the disposition of their soldiers, and anything that might aid in defeating these people. Soon, Mirini and Olympia/Prr'ann were led into a room that made Olympia's eyes go wide. It appeared that they were going to work in the library, tending to the maintenance in there, as well as acting like librarians, and bringing and fetching books as they were called for in other places within the royal residence. Mirini saw that and said, "So, you like to read, little one?"

Olympia smiled and pumped her head up and down, but it was for another reason. She had to believe that all kinds of records—either common or restricted—were contained in there. She also knew that, if she needed to see into the restricted areas, all she needed to do was make copies of certain things and put them back before they were noticed. If not, she could wait for the outer scouts to come to the planet's surface and let them, with their spy equipment, break into those things and take what they needed.

After a day of training, and hard work, they were shown their room. It was a bay kind of a set-up, and Mirini snuffed at that, saying, "These people have no clue as to what privacy means! Don't worry, Prr'ann: if someone wants to try something unseemly, they won't get past me."

Olympia thought, "_I would have told you the same thing!_"

However, for Olympia, considering her training, and how she was living prior to this in a tight crew area, this was the lap of luxury, and she was going to make the most of it. They all ate in a cafeteria style of dining, and they were all scowled at and told that they had better appreciate what they had, for other slaves did not get this kind of treatment. Later that night, when everyone was asleep, she got up and put on the top dress. She looked around to see what kind of guarding they had, and she realized that in the latrine was the best place, because there was no way to make an escape through there. She snuck in and started to call for the _Catfish_. She was worried that they had not gotten there yet, but after about five minutes of sweating, the communications officer said, "_Catfish _here: this has to be CPO Olympia."

"Roger," she whispered, "I have been put in the inner-sanctum itself—the royal palace. I am a maid in the library, and I should be running around the place enough to get a lay of things, as well as data on the people and culture here. I will have more as I get it."

"Roger, Olympia," he responded, "We are now in geosynchronous orbit over your location, and shall remain there awaiting your reports."

"Roger, out," said Olympia, cutting the transmission short, lest she may be found or detected. With that, she slipped back to the bunk and went to sleep. She had not anxieties about being there. This was what was needed for the mission, and she was getting "three hots and a cot", so she had nothing over which to complain. All it would do is make her job easier.

Serenity contacted her husband and explained the whole thing. As soon as he heard that, he said, "Finish bringing them home and establish what you can with them. Then you are to come home, because we have encountered the very ones they fought."

"When was this," asked Serenity, all curious.

He hedged in his answer, because he did not want to let her know how long this thing had been a threat. His hesitance made her turn her head and look at him oddly. He let out a heavy sigh and said, "We were attacked while you were on the first world."

"AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME!" she shrieked.

He leaned back from the screen, knowing that his wife was plenty mad now, and he said, "Dear, we didn't have full details on…" but she cut him off and said, "There was danger out here and you said NOTHING? WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?"

"_Yup…she's upset!_" he thought, as he said, "Angel, look…we didn't yet know the extent of things. What would you have done? I think, by your reaction, you would have panicked."

"I would not have!" she snapped, looking very much like her teenage self at that moment, pouting all the way.

"Then, what would you have done?"

"I'd…well…" but she couldn't say, as she just sat there, bouncing her forefingers together, looking like a naughty girl that had been caught grabbing a forbidden cookie. She then said, "Well, it still would have been nice to know."

He sighed and said, "I know, and I am sorry. This is a first for me as well. The kingdom has never had to face a foe before, so everything is kind of new for all of us. Perhaps I overreacted, and I am sorry. I should have told you: no more secrets."

She gave him a coquettish look and a cute smile as she said, "You promise?"

He just laughed and said, "I told you so, Dumpling Head!"

She smiled, but looked cross at the same time and said, "Ooh, you're going to get it when I get home!"

She then asked, "So, what's going on right now?"

"The outer scouts are doing some counterintelligence work right now. However, we don't know what is going on, because they have to maintain radio silence for success in the mission."

"Is that going to be okay?"

"Hey, you know how strong they are! They can take care of themselves. Worry for their foes: they don't know what is about to descend on them!"

They pecked each other's image and wished each other well as they broke communications. She then went to the bridge as the _Artemis_ was preparing to take off. Venus then said, "So, what did he say?"

She hung her head and said, "This may be worse than we think…and…"

She went silent as everyone was now listening intently to her. Venus, consumed with curiosity, then said, "..and what!"

"We may be going to war," she responded, hanging her head.

Now the silence hit like a tidal wave as the grim realization of her words were sinking into the crew. A war was the last thing they wanted, but now they may have to face. A triumphant day had to turn to a sad one, as they now realized that, on that day, the Golden Era of the Silver Millennium Kingdom had come to an end.

2


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"_They shall mount up as on wings of an eagle…_" _The Bible_

The arrived at the home world of the Zoarians in about three days' time, since they were towing the wounded vessel, and Captain Scleea radioed in well in advance to avoid and incident. The remainder of the crew was gathered in the cargo area—those who could—while the rest in the sick bay heard her address them on the ship's public announcement system. She stepped up and spoke in their tongue. The rest of the crew used the translator to listen in, and it was a somber speech, but there was a tinge of hope within it. She then spoke somberly, "Crew of the Threeah: this is a somber day, but also a hopeful one. Our beloved vessel is wounded, and many of our crew and comrades are not here because of the worst case of murder and treachery that any of our people have ever witnessed. It is sad to say that we are now at war, for our beloved King Laudra has made it clear that this Gnarl has need to be wiped clean of the evil that possesses them, even if it means that they must be annihilated because the evil runs deep within their kind even permeates their common folk. From this day forward, when we shall encounter any of these Gnarl, there shall be no negotiations. They shall be struck with no quarter. They must be made to pay for this treachery!"

Serenity could not believe what she was hearing. Even if they had to go to war themselves with this foe, she was not sure she could be this vicious. However, Mars' heart was rushing, as was Ceres' who had always seen that his Marines, as did Mars' SEALs, that their fighters were ministers of death thirsting for war. They too felt the martial spirit that Captain Scleea was whipping up in her battered crew. Venus listened with a somber face, not liking the level to which Scleea was ramping up things, but she also understood that this Gnarl was ruthless, and there was no way to defeat them unless they were as ruthless. Scleea continued and said, "However, because of this brave race of beings, what should have been our deaths have turned into our redemption. We owe them much. Their willingness to show kindness to strangers shows greatness in them. So brave are they, that their own Queen Serenity was willing to step out into the beyond to face dangers with her own subjects. By what we have learned, they also have been attacked by the Gnarl themselves, but they struck them a mighty blow with little loss to themselves. Even now, these Terrans have spies deep within the enemy's territory, trying to find out what they face. They are a people of action, and we must also step up, for now their foe is our foe, and we must stand together with them! Many have died, and needlessly. Others died by your sides, fighting valiantly and bravely against an overwhelming foe. We must assure that their deaths were not in vain. Know that the Threeah will rise again, and she shall fight again! Now, let us ready our new comrades and prepare for war! Let this day spell the beginning of the end for the Gnarl!"

A loud din of screeches permeated the hall. The communications officer had to turn it down a touch for the sake of the humans on board, but the translators were saying that they were all calling out war cries, to remember this one or that, or remember Delta Pavonis, and various cries of what they would do to the Gnarl if they were face-to-face with them. Jupiter was watching this with interest, hoping that everyone else could stand with that kind of courage.

While all this was going on, and with the days that had passed, Olympia was feeding the _Catfish _and the outer scouts with a steady stream of data. They learned that they called their home star Fleey, and their home world Skretch. The king was named Grenj, and the queen was named Squilla. She also learned that the society was a matriarchal society, not too dissimilar to the mole rats of earth, even down to their experience. Indeed, they were a warrior race, and they were also just as adept at fighting with their powerful jaws and sharp teeth as they were hand-to-hand. They were staunch fighters who would rather die than surrender, yet, what was odd was that, despite the warrior in them, the people themselves were also benevolent when they wanted to be. Pluto learned this, and wondered if that would be something that could be used. Another thing she found interesting when she had opportunities to meet them, was that the king, though a warrior, was quite benevolent. He didn't know why his wife insisted on conquest, or why her mother before her also demanded this. He seemed to feel that they should learn to get along, and that they could find new worlds to colonize that way, rather than the way they had been doing it for at least two generations. Squilla, on the other hand, was a ruthless dictator with a goddess complex. In their world, the queen is doted over from birth to death, and treated as if she were a goddess, so it was not hard to see the difference. Grenj wanted to see this different, and hoped that his own heirs would remember all that he had taught them, hoping that it was not brainwashed out of them. The outer scouts took this all in, and they now knew they could well use that. However, it was one night before the _Artemis _arrived at 61 Cygni Alpha that things got interesting.

Four hours after lights out, Olympia got up and put on her top dress again and went to the library. She had worked hard to learn the codes of the restricted areas, and now was the time to go in and find out what she could. While this was happening, the _Catfish_ had landed, still cloaked, in their ocean, and the outer scouts carefully and stealthily made their way to where Olympia was. If they could, they would aid her in the taking of information, and then extracting her. Olympia slipped out and past the guards of the bay, but she was not unnoticed. Mirini had been awoken by her movements and watched with curiosity as to why she was up, and risking her neck being up. She had to collect her and bring her back before she got into trouble. She slipped by herself and followed her. What now made it odd was that she was heading to the library. Mirini had found it interesting that she went wide-eyed when she saw the library, thinking that she must like to read, but for her to show THIS much interest was odd indeed. She had been very caring of her, making sure they stayed together, and keeping her out of trouble. She had begun to love her like her own daughter, and she would be accursed if she would let anything happen to her, what had happened to her own kittens.

Olympia was in the restricted area now, breathing a heavy sigh of relief that she was able to get past the guards in front of the library, and that the codes had worked. There were surveillance cameras around, but people came in at all hours for whatever reasons, and because it was dark, and because she had the codes, it made her infiltration that much easier. No suspicion was raised. She got to a point where she could give a coded and scrambled message to the outer scouts approaching, saying, "I'm in their secure files. Track this signal."

She also relayed a lay of the land so that they could slip in. They relayed back that they were not far, and they would be there soon. She then began to look at the files, and then realized all too late that there was no way to know what was what, considering that the translator only dealt with spoken words, and not written. Just as she was about to go for anything, she heard in her ear bud, "Prr'ann! What are you doing?"

Olympia wheeled around in a fighting posture, and then realized it was Mirini. She hushed her quickly, and then went and closed the door, kicking herself that she forgot to close it. Mirini said, "Girl, you are going to get yourself beaten and sent to the salt mines! Now you march right back to bed this instant and tomorrow, you are going to tell me how you got in here!"

Mirini grabbed her paw and started to pull her when Olympia turned down the translator to a hush and said, "I'm not who you think I am."

Mirini went stiff, hearing a strange language from her, but then hearing her own tongue right behind it. "What is going on?"

"We were taken before your colony got the news," responded Olympia, "Nekonia is now allied with another star system. I am of that system, and I am in disguise. I am Chief Petty Officer Olympia of the UES Catfish. I have friends coming, and I am here to gather information about this people. It seems we may soon be at war with them, and we need all the info we can get."

"So…so you used me?"

"No, but I thank my Creator that you were here. Your kindness well aided me in this, and you shall be well rewarded by both my kingdom and your own world. I swear to that creator, because of your kindness, I'm taking your with me. Now, can you read this?"

Mirini's attitude now changed, knowing that this could mean freedom for her people, and that she had no other choice but to trust this person. She said, "Yes, what are we looking for?"

"Fleet sizes, ground troop strength, even some history of this place if possible."

Mirini quickly started to help her grab several files, and the prepared to flee.

The system within which Zoar rested was interesting. The binary partner of 61 Cygni Alpha was easily seen, but was about as bright as Venus on a clear summer night. Indeed, they had adapted well to the odd cycles of neap and spring seasons, for the lack of a better description, and they were well prepared by what they were to face those changes. The _Artemis_ released the _Threeah _to their tugs, and they were then allowed clearance to land. It was a world with about five large continents, and was well developed. However, there was little in the way of vehicle travel, because their ability to fly, and fly swiftly. They could get places with little need for help. Some even flew from continent to continent when either they had the leisure time, or they had the money to use any transport if needed. The inner scouts were taking the time to adapt to the atmosphere, but they learned that it was better to use supplementary oxygen, and they were wearing these aids as they went. As the inner scouts and Ceres were being toured around, they also received a history of the world in brief, and they learned that they had an interesting development. They seemed to parallel Earth, in that, there was fighting between the various avian kinds on their home world, and for a while, the raptors dominated. They even had racial slurs one for another because of the differences. However, the so-called weaker Zoarians learned to adapt their science and combat them on an even level. Their world was in constant warfare, but there finally came a time when many of the fledglings of their different kinds were sick of the fighting and death, and began to lead a movement where they could live in harmony, knowing that they were all now far more advanced as a culture than the mentality of their elders. It was not that they hated their elders, or that they wanted to rule them, but that they just wanted to reeducated them. Instead of being fighters, they became purveyors of civil disobedience, and were willing to take the shame in order to expose the folly of the continued hatred between the different Zoarian races. It was a long road, but a spiritual leader of the water Zoarians now known as the Great Keeah stepped up to organize them and lead them. He was an incredible speaker, and even went as far as to unify a common tongue amongst those of that cause. He had charisma and could lead. Soon, he was turning many of the former generation to his side as his people began to become a space faring people. The reason for the turn was the realization that, if they were always going to fight, if there was another world that could travel through space that saw the turmoil, and they saw the fighting, they could be ripe for the picking. Keeah began to be revered like a Buddha, but one that believed in staying a strong warrior, and yet believed that that might was there to bring peace, not only to Zoar, but to all that needed their help. After some more struggle, things were coming together. However a detractor, who didn't want this change, assassinated him, but all it did was turn him into a martyr for the cause. They did not see him as a god, but they did see him as the reason why they were able to prosper as they had been. Because of him, they now were what they were. Thus, often in their speech, they would say things like, "By the name of the Great Keeah," or, "Is that in the wisdom of the Great Keeah?" or other things.

They were eventually taken to the main body of government of their people, and it was discovered that they were indeed a federated republic. They were going to meet first with their chancellor, and then meet with their legislature in order to start laying the ground work for a treaty, and the reason why such was needed. Serenity was at her diplomatic best, showing the beauty of her mature royal manners, and still having a bit of that teenage Usagi that endeared her to all that ever met her. Once they had spoken, they were taken to what would translate into The Great Klatch. What was interesting about the room was that they all had desks upon which their officials worked, but instead of chairs, they had what could best be described as perches. It was odd for a moment, but they then had to remember with what they dealt. Because of the haste of how things needed to be done, Earth's legislature gave the queen the authority to speak for both her and her husband, and sign anything that was approved. They also did not have time to get into formal wear, but went in their fuku uniforms. Once she was introduced, Serenity went up, stood in front of the perch, and said, "Thank you for your kindness and hospitality. We were grateful that we had the ability to help that brave crew to safety. I wish I could say more, but there is a clear and present danger, and we must be ready to face it."

She then went on to speak about their mutual foe, and then yielded the floor to Captain Scleea, who told of all they had seen. As she relayed the story, there was dead silence, and what the Terrans could only determine to be stern looks on their faces. Serenity resumed the lectern and said, "The Silver Millennium Kingdom is well more than willing to lend her aid to you in whatever way possible."

With that, Chancellor Arika stepped up and perched, saying, "Well, you know the danger, the evil that faces you, and the new friends that we have. I leave it to you to hash out details for a treaty."

With that, they went into session, and the inner scouts waited.

They moved with haste, but Olympia warned not to move too quickly, lest they draw attention to themselves and attract a party that they did not want to attend. Because they were on the inside, they didn't need to re-input the codes, and stepped out. Olympia gently closed the door, and she transmitted, "Documents secure…where are you?"

"We're close," reported Uranus.

They then came to the front of the library, but unfortunately, those on the camera side were growing suspicious to the extra body going in, and the lack of the door closing right away, and called the two guards to go in and check things out. They then both pointed spears at them, leaving the blasters holstered, knowing that the queen would want something of them. They then said, "You two can just set those down and come with us if you know what's good for you!"

Mirini was stiff with fear, and Olympia was quickly trying to calculate what to do next.

The outer scouts were moving swiftly, taking out as many as they could, and quietly, so as not to attract attention. They also knew that these were those with which they would not have to contend on the way out, provided they reached Olympia in time before the security was missed. Two other guards had been called to take the place of the guards at the library, and met a double clothesline from Neptune and Uranus. A third came up and yelled something that they could not understand, not having the translators. It was actually something along the lines of, "Hey, what are you doing?" but they were not there to get a lesson in the Gnarl tongue. Saturn rushed up as he went for his blaster, but Saturn had it out of his hand before he could blink with her pole arm, and then the two went pole arm to pole arm as they clashed.

The two in the library heard the action and were momentarily distracted. That was all Olympia needed, as she set the files in Mirini's arms and charged one of them. She grabbed his spear, flipped him over with it into his buddy, and plunged it into both of them as they lay there. She then took the two blasters and said, "Take these: use them if you have to. There will be enough to carry the files. We're getting out of here."

Mirini stood there shocked that her little Prr'ann could have struck with such swiftness and in such a businesslike manner. Add to that that this was the first kind of fighting that she had ever seen this close. Olympia snapped her fingers before her fingers and said, "Let's go!"

Mirini came to and followed her. Meanwhile, Saturn was clashing hard, and though her opponent was much stronger and bigger, her diminutive size made her hard to hit, especially with as swiftly as she fought. He made one critical error, and suddenly found her pole arm in his chest, followed by, "_Silent Wall_," after which he was flung into the other wall and finished off by the impact. Pluto said, "You made it! Who's that?"

"A casualty of the situation," responded Olympia.

Pluto took the files and opened a time rift and put them in. Mirini stared even more now, and Olympia said, "Hey, I have powerful friends!"

"They will be safe there for now," said Pluto, "They will hinder us. Let's go."

However, sirens sounded everywhere, and Neptune then said, "Now, we have a problem!"

2


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

"_When they come, I will stand my ground; stand my ground, I'll nay be afraid._" _Sgt. Mackenzie_

As the sirens wailed away, they ran into about two platoons coming the other way. Uranus was undaunted in her approach as the energy ball began to form in her hand. She then announced, "WORLD SHAKING!" as she let loose. Neptune was right beside her with Deep Submerge with Pluto's Dead Scream and they were now playing "Bowling for Gnarl." As they wiped them out and ran past, more troops were creeping out to answer the call. Mirini was using the blasters, merely doing so by survival instinct at best. However, two tried to jump from behind and take her, but Olympia was ready. Being that every SEAL was trained in at least two of Mars' attacks, Olympia let loose with Fire Soul, and then laughed as she watched the two guards attempt to come free from their now burning uniforms. Mirini looked at her in wonder, but she grabbed Mirini saying, "No time to explain. I'll tell you later when we are safe!"

The outer scouts were also showing their expertise with their hand-to-hand and fighting their way to the escape vehicle. Just before they got there, a squad leapt out, but Olympia let loose and shouted, "BURNING MANDALA!" blowing the weapons out of their hands, and then flinging them into the wall as they fell unconscious. They all piled into the scout pod and rocketed off. They had not gotten far when they were being pursued by guard craft. The tail gunner, (Uranus,) was doing all she could to keep them off while the SEAL piloting was doing all he could to evade the return fire. Mirini sat huddled with Olympia, somehow managing to ignore the combat around her, and stared at Olympia and said, "I don't understand. How could you have looked so authentic?"

"Special reversible plastic surgery," responded Olympia, "This was the genius of the head of medicine and science, Princess Admiral Mercury, as was this translator. All this was the best way to infiltrate our foe and get all we could out of them. You were a great help, and may my creator help me make sure that I can help you! You shall be well rewarded."

An explosion above them caught their attention and returned them to the reality of the battle. Soon, they were at the coast, and the on shore batteries were starting to lock in on them. This is when the _Catfish_ came uncloaked and began to fire a couple of torpedoes at the batteries as a pair of particle accelerator phalanx guns opened up on the pursuing vehicles. The Gnarl that managed to flee the scene was in awe of the power that these invaders possessed. Once the shuttle was in the bay, the ship came about hard and hit one quarter impulse, tearing a sizeable wake as they fled. Soon, they were up to speed and took off as the foils gave the lift and the impulse engine gimbaled and kept them stable. Just they broke the atmosphere; they cloaked and set course for Nekonia.

The king and queen were rudely awakened by the alarms, and once they were able to get somewhat clothed and to the throne room, they had learned that spies had managed to infiltrate, and then blast their way out of the palace. They had been pursued, but they managed to escape in a vessel that could cloak. When Squilla asked who it was that stole the vital information, they told her it was a pair of Nekonians with four of the oddest looking creatures he had ever seen, clad in odd sailor uniforms and short skirts. The queen was livid! She screeched, "READY THE FLEET! IT IS TIME TO STOP PLAYING! I WANT A FULL INVASION OF THE PLANET AND WIPE THEM ALL OUT: ALL LIFE FORMS—**ALL**!"

Grenj was shocked at her ferocity and said, "My dear, they do deserve our wrath, but, to go to that extent…"

"Silence, you spineless thing!" she shouted at him, "They have mocked us, and they will soon learn that that was foolish. NO ONE does that to us! The rest of the galaxy will then fear our names! They will know better than to fight us and all shall kowtow! You don't want war? This will prevent it!"

A new message came in from one of the command vessels, and the captain said, "Your majesty, we noticed a strong neutron surge not too far outside the atmosphere, and had the faintest star distortion for a brief moment before the sensors lost it. We then detected a warp signature in that area."

"Excellent!" she said, "Pursue that path with the whole invasion fleet and wipe them out. They only have so much of a navy, so it should be easy. Send in the ground troops once you carve a path to the planet and wipe out all life on the surface—no exceptions and no mercy or quarter."

"As you wish, your majesty," he responded, and cut the transmission. Squilla then just sat there in rage, but in sweet thought of the message that would be sent: mess with the Gnarl, and face extinction.

As the ship traveled to Nekonia, Olympia was in surgery as Mirini paced in her guest quarters. Soon, a ring came at the door, and a voice on the speaker said, "It's me! They're all done."

Mirini opened the door to see Olympia in her full New Zealand Maori glory and navy blue senshei fuku. "Prr'ann…oh, I'm sorry, Olympia…" Mirini started to say, but Olympia then said, "Hey, it's okay! I understand."

"Well, you look…different," was all Mirini could say, and Olympia said, "That, I also understand. I must look repulsive to you now."

"Well, you still have a beauty to you, I have to admit," said Mirini, "Still, I kind of felt you like a daughter."

Olympia took her by the paws and said, "Hey, you do remind me much of my own mother. I feel it an honor to be considered like a daughter to you. I hope that we can stay that way for one another."

"And I thank you for being there," answered Mirini, "You freed me from that captivity. I only hope we can keep the home world safe."

Olympia hugged her and said, "We'll do our best. I have powerful friends."

"I hope so, love, I hope so."

CreCre was putting in a call to Ceres, and she said, "Hi bro! How goes the exploration thing?"

"Oorah!" was his response, to which CreCre asked rhetorically, "How did I know you were going to say that?"

"You know me too well!" he answered, "So, what's going on with you?"

"The flotilla is on its way to a planet called Nekonia. We are going to help act as a protection group to aid them against the Gnarl."

"That reminds me: once I'm done with you, patch me through to the princess and the commandant of my marines there."

Usagi came up with the rest of the quartet and said, "We're all right here!"

"You five never split do you?" asked Ceres.

"Hey, we're all sisters in a sense," answered Usagi, "We know each other's moves so well we might as well be one person. Speaking of the sibling thing, I thought it was neat that you and CreCre discovered that you were related from the Old Moon Kingdom, but I wonder why you two have the same name."

"That's an odd one," said Ceres, "From what I have learned, mother and father wanted a daughter so bad that, despite having the ability to know the gender beforehand, they did not take that opportunity, and just hoped that they could will a daughter. They picked the name, but they had me. Despite that, (considering Princess Mars was names what she was,) they let it go. It made me tough when you consider that 'Ceres' is the name of a goddess. It was kind of like that 'A Boy Named Sue' kind of thing. It made me tough enough to want to join the marines. They then had their daughter, and named her that, but we called her CreCre to designate between us."

The others stared at the two, (Ceres on the screen, and CreCre being present,) and Juno said, "You had some weird parents!"

"You don't know the half of it!" said CreCre, "They were very eccentric! I can't explain their thinking. You could say we both survived our childhoods!"

The rest just shook their heads and rolled their eyes, and Vesta said, "Anyway, it seems we may well be heading into a war."

"Well, if we can make a good enough show of force, if it comes to that," responded Ceres, "maybe we can send a message to them that fighting us would be a very bad idea."

"PallaPalla scared!" said Pallas, all nervous.

"Hey, you've already fought once," said Ceres, "You did well, from what I understand, so why be nervous now?"

Vesta started to knead Pallus' shoulders and said, "Don't worry; that's just her way of getting over the jitters. When she is ready to fight, Pallus the Decapitator will be ready to fight."

Ceres lifted an eyebrow, and CreCre explained, "That's what the rest of the pilots call her; have you ever seen her dolls?"

"Oh yeah," remembered Ceres, "I never understood that."

"We never ask," responded Juno, "We have no idea what kind of response we might get, and I don't think we want to know!"

"Well, if you could patch me through to the commandant now, I'll say good-bye for now and wish you clear skies," said Ceres, "I know you five can handle yourselves."

"HOOYAH," they all shouted in the Navy cry, and sent him to the commandant. Usagi then said, "Well, the only thing we can do now is wait."

Pallus was still pacing the floor, and she said, "PallaPalla has a bad feeling about all this."

Usagi said, "Hey, stay strong, Sailor Pallus. We will be okay. You make it sound like we are heading into the Apocalypse."

"I hope not," was all Vesta could say.

Ceres told the commandant to have every available marine to go planetside and be ready to aid the Nekonian ground forces. He wanted to be sure they could repel any invading force. Meanwhile, after a few days, the flotilla arrived just as the _Catfish_ did, and the captain on the battleship welcomed them back and congratulated them for a successful mission. Little did any know that they had been tailed all the way. They had not been long there when the battleship was out with a heavy cruiser and two destroyers on picket duty when it happened. The scanners went crazy, and on their view screens was the faintest image of some kind of unknown craft. The captain on the battleship gave orders to put it on tactical, and the scanners reached further. Once they did, the tactical image on screen showed a huge fleet of the Gnarl heading their way—enough for a full invasion force. He immediately radioed back to the rest that there was trouble coming, and to prepare for a huge attack. He then gave command for the ships to head back and prepare for what he feared would be a last stand.

Serenity was in with the other scouts as they were tuning in on the status of the Saturn Flotilla, just to catch what was going on. The news report had not gone long when the flotilla began to change formation rapidly to be joined by the Nekonian fleet, which was only twice the size of the flotilla. As that was happening, the other ships rocketed in while fighters were flying out of the carrier and into a defensive position. The reporter then said, "Folks, it looks like it's about to get hot here! It seems that…what…yes; it seems an entire Gnarl Invasion force is on the way here! We are heading to a safe distance to watch, and we will be reporting the whole thing as it happens!"

Serenity stiffened. She was not expecting this! This was also being piped to the Zoarians as Captain Scleea was in with the queen on a social call. Scleea turned her attention to the screen, knowing that this could get very bad. They watched as the battleship and the heavy cruisers opened up. They had the rail guns, and thus, they had range. They hoped to do what they could to soften the blow, but they were not sure how much that was going to do. The flag commander on the battleship said for the fighters to be ready to go forward and intercept the fighters, but Usagi said, "Belay that order! There's too many, and we have to protect you and the planet! The only way we can to that is with your anti-fighter cover!"

The fighters moved out to a good defensive position just as the Gnarl hit. The Nekonian fighters joined them, and it looked like two hives of hornets fighting for the ownership of the nest, and the Gnarl had the larger swarm. The other ships gave cover as the other big ships fired for range, and it seemed to be going well at first. However, that was soon to change as the Gnarl came into range of their own weapons. Serenity tensed up, knowing that the five that stayed with each other were her daughter and the Amazoness Quartet. However, what got her worse was seeing the Gnarl come in and rip right into their targets. Serenity couldn't believe it!

On the _Catfish_, Olympia and Mirini were on the bridge with the rest of the outer scouts. Because they were cloaked, they were a much harder target to hit, and they used that to their advantage with the other CT cruisers. However, they had to appear to fire, but that was only for a brief moment, and they kept it random as they went so the foe couldn't get a bead on them. Olympia said, "I'm sorry you couldn't go back, it's too dicey."

"If I have to go," Mirini said bravely, "then to be with you would be fine. I feel proud that I get to see my people make a stand."

"I hope it's not a last stand," commented Neptune.

As things wore on, the facts were beginning to tell. Being outnumbered 3 to1 and outgunned was not winning odds, and it was showing. The fighters were going down in short order, and that left the ships vulnerable. Once the distance was pulled to close quarters, they began to chew up both the Terrans and Nekonians. Serenity was in shock, and then screaming at the screen, "GET OUT OF THERE! GET OUT! NOOOO!"

She was gripping the screen and starting to cry now. The others wanted to move in, but they realized it would do no good, and all they could do was grimly stare. Matters got worse when the admiral of the Gnarl fleet decided that the ground troops could land. The fighters tried to do what they could—what was left of them—but sheer number of landing craft, coupled with the other fighters and the enemy vessels anti-fighter guns, prevented the stopping of this. What was left of the fighters then pulled in close to the now shrinking number of vessels. Once the craft landed, the sheer number of invaders provided a situation of shock and awe. What made matters worse was that they were firing indiscriminately at anything moving. This caused chaos amongst the defending troops and the Asteroid Marines there. They wanted to keep from killing the innocents to get a target, but the Gnarl moved in and out of them, making it hard to hit them in such a fashion, of which the Gnarl took full advantage. Soon, even the civilians were now picking up arms of the fallen on either side, considering they were under fire as well, making the Gnarl feel more justified in their twisted way of thinking now that they had chosen to become combatants. They started to bring our armor and armored troop transports to break up the formations, and that was followed by ships with artillery. Once that was in place, they started to strike from the air. This was something that those planetside could not do, because the fighters were committed to the space battle, and they had been crushed for the most part. With air superiority, though they were technically outnumbered, the Gnarl could strike without being struck back. Ceres heard the report coming back in the garbled messages, hearing confusion and horror, and the only thing he could come away with that was "good" was the fact that word returned to him that they all fought bravely, not surrendering or giving up, fighting and dying like true marines. To add to the mix of horror was the news that the Gnarl was doing the "scorched earth" method. They were not just trying to win the battle; they were trying to exterminate the Nekonians. This was when the last transmission from their capitol before it was wiped out, and it said to abandon the planet as best and as fast as they could. Many shuttles and transports were now filling with refugees taking only what they could carry, getting out of there as fast as they could. Sadly, some of them were being shot down before they could get far. Others were being hit before they could leave the atmosphere. Some were getting out, and when Usagi saw this, she gave orders to escort them out of there. Vesta then said, "But what about the ships."

Grimly, and with tears in her eyes, she said, "This is no longer a battle, this is a rescue mission."

"But, the ships," pleaded CreCre, but Usagi said grimly and plainly, "We can't help them. We must help who we can."

This was when the full gravity of the situation hit home. Now it was try to get out of there, and get as many Nekonians out of harm's way as possible.

The Gnarl were now closing in, and the only ships left were the Terran battleship, the carrier, and about two CT cruisers, (the enemy doing what they could to catch the neutron surges when they could, and sending energy torpedoes in an array to act like depth charges,) the _Catfish_ being one of them. All the remaining vessels were much damaged, and if they needed to, could only manage about warp 3. This was when the only option to one of them filled her head, and she snuck out to enact it. Sensors went crazy as they noticed an escape pod launch, and then hit the after burners. This was noticed too late by the Gnarl, who would have blown it up if they had had the chance. This caused Pluto to look around and notice that Saturn was gone. Immediately, she shouted, "Which pod was that? Patch me in to it!"

They quickly did so, and Pluto saw a contented Saturn in the pod. Pluto then said, "Don't do this!" knowing what she must have had in mind. Saturn just responded, "It has to be this way. I must stop them somehow. I can't let them have the satisfaction of raping that planet. All the Nekonians have either left or died, and we have to have some victory out of this."

"No, it's a lost cause!" Pluto shouted back, "There is no need for this!"

"If we strike down their entire strike force, we cripple them," she responded, "We also take some of their ships with it. It has to be done."

Pluto begged her not to do it, but all Saturn said was, "We shall meet again. Fear not, for this is not new to me, for it is for situations like this that I was born. Be at peace, dear Setsuan-sensei. We shall see each other again."

Saturn then ended the transmission, and then ripped out the radio. Quickly, Pluto said, "Emergency warp out—all vessels: as fast as you can go!"

A course was quickly set in the direction of the fleeing shuttles and transports, and they warped off to meet them. Meanwhile, on the Gnarl ships, from the planet's surface, it was noted that something was going to a critical mass way off the scales, and it didn't take Albert Einstein to figure out what was going to happen. The admiral of the Gnarl gave immediate orders for all ships to head back to Skretch at top speed. Many ships did, but about a third of the ships were too slow in their calculations, and it cost them. In a blinding flash, the planet and any too close went up in smoke, and just as quickly, the fireball was gone, leaving behind only expanding debris and glowing radiated gas.

At the wounded ships, they began to assess casualties and render what aid they could. The hospital ship was gone, and there was only so much the remainder of the medical crew could do. From where they were, they knew that it would take a year to see the end result of Saturn's sacrifice. Had it been right away, it would have looked like a new star had formed, and then dimmed. The outer scouts could do nothing more than stare, while Olympia and Mirini were in tears. At Zoar, Serenity was in a ball on the floor in crying seizures. She had seen up close and personal the horrors of war, and it could indeed be said that, if the Silver Millennium Kingdom was not yet at war, they certainly were now. Venus came over now and started to get her upright, trying to console her. This was more than Serenity could take, or had wanted to see. It was then a transmission came in, and it said, "Mother, please don't cry. I'm okay."

Serenity snapped her head up and saw the face of her daughter. She was swiftly on her feet now, hugging the screen, her face planted to the screen. "Baby, baby…oh baby!" was all she could say, "Why? How could they do this?"

"Mother, we need medical help," Usagi responded, "We are heading back for Terra, and please have a medical craft meet us."

Serenity then said, "I'm on my way as well!" still crying, "Please, keep away from the fighting until I see you. I need to hold you again!"

"I love you, mother," answered Usagi, "And I'll be waiting for you. Please stay brave for me."

Serenity began to sniff it back, and she said, "What was all that about Saturn."

"Momma," she said, but trailed off, and Serenity said, "She didn't…"

"She did," was all she could answer, "She took out their army and many of their ships from what we can guess."

Now, her crying was changing. Now they saw a side of Serenity was rare, but when she was pushed to this point, she suddenly had the clearest kind of thinking, and the Serenity of the old kingdom took over completely. She said, "Get us there and get us home. This Gnarl is going to pay to the 25th power! We are going to strike a vicious blow! THEY WILL PAY FOR THIS! SATURN WILL NOT HAVE DIED IN VAIN!"

Venus then consoled, "You know she will be reborn."

"Yes I know!" Serenity answered, "But they caused her to do this! THE SILVER MILLENNIUM KINGDOM WILL BE AVENGED, AS WELL AS NEKONIA! LET'S GO!"

She marched out towards the transport, with Scleea behind her, saying, "You have Zoar's full support. Your foe is our foe! Together, we shall strike a mighty blow and ensure this tyranny is wiped from the annals of history!"

Serenity nodded and said, "Then send an envoy to Terra, and a council of war shall be conducted. We have eight more flotillas, more marines, and a massive army. They are going to regret every bit of it if I have my way! Contact Great Mound and find out where they stand."

Venus nodded, and now all the scouts went with her. They didn't voice it, but they all had the determination to see their queen's revenge through. Saturn and Nekonia would be avenged.

4


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

"_Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake._" _Napoleon Bonaparte_

The _Artemis_ arrived at the wounded ships and Mercury immediately took transport to them to supervise the engineers to get the engines and the superstructure to do at least warp six to get back home in reasonable time. The medical teams then did all they could to tend to the wounded, and wound up getting a crash course in Nekonian anatomy and medicine. There were some doctors amongst the refugees, and they aided the science/medical team with aiding their people. As the treatment continued, it became sickeningly more obvious that the Nekonians were now an endangered species. The next thing to do was to get them somewhere to settle. However, King Endymion opened up the Sol system and all the worlds within it to shelter them until a new world could be found. All the colonists then joined them, knowing that the Gnarl would come after them next. Once all was gathered, and enough aid was rendered, they returned to the Sol system.

Meanwhile, the Gnarl went back, confident with their win, but with some, there was a sense of loss. Their entire invasion army was wiped out by whatever weapon it was they employed. It would now have to be watched, and the second such a critical mass was even hinted at, they would bug out as fast as they could. The report went in to the queen about the weak resistance they faced, and how they had to cheat in order to halt progress. However, by them doing so, they merely quickened the work. The queen sat in her throne with a devilish look on her already hideous face. Squila then announced, "Take some time to replace the missing ships and to replenish the troops."

The fleet admiral said, "Begging your pardon, your majesty, but would it not be good to go after then while we have the chance? I mean, they must be demoralized, these Terrans. Our intelligence has managed to decipher their tongue, and we can track them now."

"They must be terrified of us now!" shouted Squila, "They would not dare strike back against our might. Send a battle group to their system under a flag of truce and make an announcement to them. Demand their fealty, and we shall then enslave them when they kowtow to our might! Tell them that they will share Nekonia's fate if they try to resist."

Grenj now was worried, wondering what they had done. If the enemy had weapons like what destroyed Nekonia… "Dear," he said meekly, "Um…according to our intelligence, they have a much bigger fleet back at their home system. I don't think…"

"Silence, fool!" she shouted, "Honestly, I don't think you have any idea on how to wield your power! They have no allies save a crushed people with no navy! We have superior numbers no matter what they have! They die magnificently! We shall crush them, and then rule them!"

Grenj sat henpecked and let it go. Still, he couldn't help but feel in his stomach that they were now making a dreadful mistake. From what he read, the weapons of the Terrans were superior to their blasters, and that their ships could fight on the planet's surface as well as in space. He just wasn't sure about this.

As they were preparing to leave, a meeting of another kind was happening. Serenity was transported to the carrier, and when she saw Usagi, she scooped her up and held her tightly. "Oh, baby, you don't know how good it is to see you!"

"I love you too, mother!" answered Usagi, "Know that the Quartet stuck by my side and made many risks to ensure that I would not die. They should be well rewarded."

"Oh, I assure you, they will be!" she said, tears now flowing. Everyone watched the teary reunion. Meanwhile, CreCre and Ceres met, and she leapt into his arms as they embraced. "Sis, that was insane!" said Ceres, "I hope you never need to see that again!"

"Hey, marine," she said, "Next time, they won't know what hit them! It was horrible, but all I want to do is avenge the Moon Rabbits, (the nickname of the fighter wing to which they belonged.)"

"Oh, believe me, I'm with you on that!" said Ceres, "I won't be happy until I am leading the counterattack against the Gnarl on their own world!"

While that was happening, there were three contemplating their next move.

The remainder of the outer scouts was going over the stolen information, but still reeling over Saturn's sacrifice. They could not believe that she would act like that at that time, and they wondered why she would not have saved that until they were, maybe, at the Gnarl home world, and things weren't going so well. They sat silent, not speaking unless they had to, and doing what they could to keep it professional. They were the Office of Naval Intelligence, and risks like that always faced them. She had done what she had done for the sake of the kingdom, and she had done so of her own free will. Yet, somehow, that didn't remove their hollow feelings, her being missing feeling like having a phantom limb. They knew she would be reborn, but when and how was up in the air. They all really wanted to cry, but they had to keep it under control for the sake of things. In the meantime, Olympia's haul gave them much. The history of the Gnarl had always been one in the past of benevolence. They had always been able to be peaceful with other worlds in the past, or just picked worlds that were uninhabited upon which to live. They were actually a noble race of beings, despite their hideous looks, that was a matriarchal society. The queen was always cared for and doted over, common to the Earth creature known as the mole rat, of which the resembled greatly, as if she was a queen bee. Because of the matronly nature of the queen, she normally was benevolent. However, two queens previous had lost her husband in an accidental misunderstanding with another world. By the evidence, they figured that she went insane, giving the order to wipe out that world's population and anything that marked civilization. The world itself was left alone. After they studied it, they were shocked to find out that it was _the uninhabited world that the Artemis had visited!_ If they had had the time, they could have found remnants of that society buried or overgrown. Further, her daughters became more power hungry and maniacal as things went along. They were now at war with a race of beings that wanted more elbow room, and would wipe out the beings on a world to take it over.

Neptune began to think and she said, "If I were the queen, I would be forced to think that not all her people are evil like that."

Uranus just laughed and said, "You hang around her too much! They are a vicious foe, and they must be smashed!"

"You speak out of the rage of your loss," said Pluto, "Olympia even gave indications that the king does not agree with her actions."

"Indeed," added Neptune, "They may only be acting out of instinct. If they are related to the mole rats of Earth, they have an instinctive need to obey the Alpha female."

"This is why they must be stopped violently!" reasoned Uranus, but Pluto said, "They will follow the will of the queen. If she has heirs, then there is hope."

"Wait, you aren't talking about kidnapping one of them, are you?" asked Uranus in surprise.

"Not at all," said Pluto, "Because I suspect that, if he is a good king, he may have taught his children well, and we would just have to see what that has done. If they are benevolent, then there is a chance."

"How do we find out?" asked Neptune, but Pluto just smiled. She then said, "We used the ship for the sake of the previous mission. However, we can just jump through the time streams and get there instantly. Come on, let us inform the king and do some more work."

"What about Queen Buns-Head?" asked Uranus.

"She would try to stop us," said Pluto, "She is not in the state of mind to do any straight thinking right now. We just have to tell him and go. The rest of the tactical information we can give to Venus, Ceres, and his majesty, because they would need that to form a plan."

With that, they informed Endymion, who fully understood why they were doing this, and gave them his blessing. With that, they were off on a mission.

Venus, Ceres, and the king received copies of the data and began to pour over it. "According to this, their fleet size still is at two to one, but our weapons out match theirs," observed Venus, "In a naval battle, it's even pegging, and at great loss to both sides."

"Their ground troops are not as massive, though," said Ceres, "According to these numbers, if they tried to invade anywhere now, considering the numbers my Marines guessed before succumbing to the foe, they would only be able to leave behind only a certain force. My Marines would be able to handle that."

Venus then said, "We can also send in Mars with the SEALs to soften them up from the inside."

"That's assuming that we can get back to their home world," reasoned Endymion, "This brings us back to the naval battle issue, on which your Marines would be amassed, and that would be no guarantee that you could get close enough."

"What do you suggest?" asked Venus.

"If they want us that bad, let them come here first," said Endymion smiling.

The other two looked at him with wonder. "You can't possibly mean that we let them invade!" said Venus.

"Not exactly," said Endymion, "It all depends on what my wife can do. She's at a summit right now with Queen and the Zoar ambassador. From there, it all depends on the size of their fleets."

The summit was being held on the Moon itself. All the pageantry that would be expected from a summit was there, as the royal head of Great Mound made her appearance. Because Zoar was a republic, the ambassador did not really want a ceremony, but he just took it as he could and approached the other two. There were the normal paparazzi doing what they do best and they were raining questions at them. However, they were ignored as the three went inside to meet. Queen said, "Dear Earth matron: I so wish my first visit to your mound could have been under better circumstances. I understand you suffered a great loss."

"It was sad," said Rhaphas, (the Zoarian ambassador,) "but know that she did not die in vain. She kept a sad situation from becoming worse."

"Many suffered loss," said Serenity, "And I came close to it myself. My daughter kept marching in where angels fear to tread."

"That reflects a great mother being with her so young," said Queen, knowing that royalty breeds royalty in more than just genetics. Serenity smiled at the kind statement, and Rhaphas said, "Where is your king?"

"He had military affairs to tend to," answered Serenity, "But he should be joining us holographically soon. He was going over some intelligence."

No sooner had she said that when an image appeared in an empty chair, and he greeted the entourage, saying, "Greetings, I am King Endymion. I thank you all for being here with us."

They acknowledged his presence and they all sat. He then continued, "According to what we know, they outnumber our ships 2 to 1, but we reverse that in weaponry. We also have spies on the ground right now assessing the state of the people there to find out where they stand with all this."

Serenity looked at him oddly and asked, "Spies: who is there?"

"The remainder of the counterintelligence team, dear," answered Endymion, "Remember: that is what they do."

Serenity looked horrified and said, "Haven't they sacrificed enough?"

Endymion then said, "You could not have stopped them, and you know that. They have always operated by a different playbook."

She wanted to argue him down, but she just sat, shaking her head. The king continued and said, "They are taking time to lick their wounds from what we can tell, and that will be their undoing if we have our way about it."

"I don't think they have a choice," said Queen, "They were hit with an attack that no one could have expected. They are probably not even sure if it could be repeated, and they are not exactly willing to find out right away. For certain, they will try."

"Then how do we prepare?" asked Serenity.

"We need to defend, but attack as well," stated the king, "but our resources would be stretched."

"We have a beef as well," said Rhaphas, "I can lend you the aid of my fleet in the attack. It is half your size from what I can tell, but together we can strike a mighty blow."

"I can send 2/3 of our fleet," said Queen, "and it would equal the number in the fleet here. The rest can go in the attack."

"Then what I propose is this," said the king, "I will send all but three flotillas and combine with the rest on the attack. The other three could combine with the Moundians here. Our army would then be shifted to wherever the attack was aimed."

"My soldiers can be with you as well," said Queen.

"What about an army for attack?" asked Rhaphas.

"That, well, we have Marines for that," answered Serenity.

"They would need a force to keep the gains behind them," responded Rhaphas, "We can send our army as a counter-invasion force. Besides, if we are victorious, an occupying force shall be needed until stability returns."

"Why not just wipe them out?" asked Queen.

"We can't do that," said Serenity, "If we did, we would be just as bad."

"Eye for an eye, an antenna for an antenna," said Queen.

The king jumped in before it got bad and said, "We have spies on the ground right now. They are going to find out if such a thing is needed. If we can do this without going to that extent, we shall. However, if that society is that corrupt, then we would have little choice, because the war would never end."

"Where do we go from here?" asked Rhaphas.

"We patrol, just in case," said Endymion, but just as he said that, and alert was heard, but the transmission also said, "The Gnarl ship is waving an electronic flag of truce!"

A Gnarl ship had entered the orbit of Pluto, about where the flotilla was at that time, and they stated that they had some terms. "More like an ultimatum," assessed the king, "Okay, patch us through. We'll talk to them."

On screen came what was hideous to those not used to such sights, though this was a person. Serenity had to choke back the fears of the old days where she would have leapt behind the chair in fear, and she gripped the chair to keep her courage. The king was not so intimidated and said, "Okay, we have given you space…speak!"

The Gnarl commander said, "By know, you know of our might. You of this system were fools for trying to aid our foe. However, we are forced to assume that you did so in ignorance, yet your actions cannot be entirely forgiven. Yet, we can show mercy, and we shall tell you how that shall come. Surrender to us now, unconditionally, submit to our control. We shall let you live, but to our demands. You shall be able to live without occupation, but we shall demand a periodic tribute of precious metals, resources, and people for labor as we demand. Do that and you shall live in peace. Do it not, and we shall annihilate you as we did the fool Nekonians. You have 48 of your hours to respond to this, and we shall await your answer here."

The rage of Serenity started to resurface. Their arrogance was more than she could take. "You are a fool to think that we would ever kowtow to you! Your trying to wipe out a peaceful people who only wanted to explore space in peace and share their peace with all is inexcusable. Neil Armstrong, who went to explore space in peace for all mankind may forgive you, but I shall not. I, the pretty queen in the satin white dress, guardian of love and justice—Neo-Queen Serenity and Sailor Moon—in the name of the moon, and Princess Saturn, we shall punish you!"

She was even taking the pose of the old days, letting her righteous indignation come to the fore. The other two were emboldened by this, and Queen stood up, saying, "You are also an arrogant fool to think that you are the mightiest warriors in the galaxy! If you act like this to these peaceful Terrans, what would you do to us! Truth is, you would die in droves, but that is beside the point. As far as we are concerned, and attack on them is an attack on us! Prepare to die like fools!"

Rhaphas had space to speak for his senate and said, "You attacked one of our ships when we saw one of your fleets attack that fleeing race who had done nothing to you. We were at war with you the instant you did, and that race of beings scream from the beyond for vengeance, and vengeance we are all to happy to exact! Your tyranny and evil stops! Know that Zoar stands against you, and the people that lost their lives trying to stop it shall be avenged. Now, flee and tell your pathetic queen that her doom comes! Any ship that we see is an instant target with no warning from this day forward!"

Queen said the same thing, and the king says, "Flee before we forget our honor and destroy you out of spite!"

The captain on the other end just laughed and said, "You can't be serious! You don't have what it takes to…"

"Before we let you leave," said Serenity, now sounding like the Serenity of the old kingdom, "I would request that the queen of your world transmit to the whole galaxy the image of her placing her fang filled face between her own legs and kissing her own tail!"

He now became enraged, "You have insulted our great matron! Know then that from this day forward that we now fly the red flag of no quarter! No mercy shall be sought, and no prisoners taken!"

Endymion raised an eyebrow and said, "Are you under that now?"

"YES!" he thundered.

"Good," said Endymion, "Then, UES _Charon,_ punctuate the terms!" and cut the transmission. The captain of the Gnarl ship now looked in horror as the battleship turned ready for a broadside. As that was happening, the king said, "We have recorded the discussion with that ship, and we are ready to transmit that to the Gnarl home world. Any Gnarl ships between here and there would receive it and thus be informed that their days were numbered. There was no way that the Gnarl would not know what happened to their ship. Meanwhile, all nine rail guns and the 47 particle accelerators let loose, making quick work of the Gnarl vessel that had had no chance to call for their shields to be raised. "The message has been sent;" said Endymion, "Now, let us prepare to make this a short war if we can."

"I'll be coming to see you, my love," said Serenity, "Be waiting."

"…With baited breath," he said, and they ended the transmission. Serenity then said, "Your ships will be given escort from the Mercury and the Venus flotillas. I am sure you have preparations to make."

They both agreed, and provisions were made for embassies on their respective home worlds to keep in contact one with another. Once that was settled, Serenity went back to Earth.

Endymion was in their bed chamber awaiting her arrival, and she came in, rushing to him. "Darling," said Endymion, but that was all he got out before she caught him in a bear hug and started to cry. "Why? Why, why, why?" was all she could say, "I don't want all this death; I don't want all this killing!"

All he could do is rock her back and forth and say, "We'll be okay. We have fought together before. Be my brave Sailor Moon for me."

They stayed that way for about 15 minutes before she slowed down her crying, looked up to him, and they began to kiss passionately. Soon, they were in each other's arms, giving each other the comfort that they so needed at that time, and doing something that would actually bring something out of the loss that they had felt not but days before.

5


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

"_A military man can scarcely pride himself on having 'smitten a sleeping enemy'; it is more a matter of shame, simply, for the one smitten. I would rather you made your appraisal after seeing what the enemy does, since it is certain that, angered and outraged, he will soon launch a determined counterattack._" _Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto: what he actually said after Pearl Harbor, which history remembers as, _"_I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve._"

By use of the time streams, the counter intelligence team was on the Gnarl home world, right into their capitol, and they went right to work. Thanks to the work of Olympia, they knew what was safe to eat and not to eat, their security, how tight it was, and so forth. They stayed out of sight because they had not taken the time to change their outer looks due to the need to act swiftly. The faster they could get their work done, the faster that they could return, and the quicker the new alliance could strike and put an end to things before it became a long and protracted war. They took the time to assess some of the other races that were on this world, and it appeared that the only free ones were the Gnarl. If you were not a Gnarl, you were a slave. After some time of moving around, they noticed one race of beings that wore robes and covered themselves well. When they saw that, they emulated it and then were able to move about publicly. They also kept covered the universal translators so that they could speak to people. Because their mouths were covered, there was no way anyone could see the dissonance between the words that were spoken, and the movement of the mouth. With all of that, they went about their task of gathering information.

Between the scuttlebutt between the soldiers and inhabitants, and also amongst the slaves, they learned that popular opinion about all that had happened was mixed. Many of the younger Gnarl was caught up in the propaganda of the fighting, and they felt themselves the noble race, fit and marked to conquer the galaxy as the superior beings. However, there were some old timers who remembered the queen's grandmother and how she had been before she had gone mad with revenge. Some of the wiser officers felt that they had stirred up a nest of stinging insects, and it would not be long before that sting was felt. They knew that it would not be one, but three star systems that would be coming after them, and by the reaction of the Terrans that had been detected in a transmission that was aimed in the direction of the Gnarl home world, they were willing to be ruthless. The younger soldiers and many of the youth scolded their elders for having any fear, or any inkling that they could possibly ever lose. Yet, some of the veterans told them that they would soon have an education that they would rather had come through other means than what was coming. They were gathering news articles and pictures about the things that the previous data had given, and had been sending it back with Pluto in the time streams. They also managed to find an old abandoned mine with primitive but adequate facilities in which to set up shop for the mission there. Once this was done, it was time to assess the true sentiment and war footing of the Gnarl. If they could cause something to happen from within, then it would be so much the better.

They spent about a week working on the slaves, and talking to some of the Gnarl that was just common citizens. What they began to learn was interesting. The people, for the most part, were not all that fond of fighting, and for two generations, they were wondering when all the fighting would end. They would rather things had been the way that it was, but there was also the instinct to follow their queen. Because their instinct was to follow their matriarch, though they did not want things the way they were, the also kept having this attitude that it would all come out okay in the end, and just let things go. However, to the three spies, it seemed to be more of a willing ignorance of how things were in order to follow "instinct" and not mess with the status quo, lest the wrath that they observed from the throne of the Gnarl would come down on them. Yet, when they were finally able to gain the trust of some of the slaves, they soon learned that indeed it was willful ignorance, and moreover, they also spoke of a resistance movement that was marked by membership of some of the slaves, though they dare not say who they were openly, and some of the Gnarl that did not want things the way they were, instinct or no instinct. Pluto then acknowledged to the other two, "Indeed, this proves that they are indeed beings that have a free will. It is indeed instinct, but any sentient creature can overcome those kinds of instincts in time."

"Then the next obvious step is to find this resistance," announced Uranus.

They would not have to search long.

On their fifth night in the caves, they were sitting down to their Spartan meal, discussing all that they had learned so far, when Neptune got the look on her face that they, by this point, had come to learn was her premonition abilities acting up. They watched her look around, and then look down towards an area that led down to a shaft that went deep into the ground. She then said, "We are not alone."

The other two quickly set down their food and started to take on a defensive mentality. They sat quiet, thinking that there may be someone approaching, but they heard nothing. Neptune had come to, and then she said, "They are still a distance off, but they are indeed approaching."

"Did they detect us in any way?" asked Pluto.

"By the feel of things," she responded, "They have been watching us for a day and a half, not sure what to make of us."

"That rules out them being Gnarl regulars," said Uranus, "Could that mean that there IS a resistance?"

They could faintly hear some footsteps approaching by this point, and they took the opportunity to hide at that point. They used the robes to help conceal themselves in the dark corners, as they pulled away any evidence that anyone had been there. They had set up camp like this as they always had, that they could make a quick retreat if the needed to and leave no trace behind that they had been there. This was why Spartan conditions were not all that bad, because that was the best way to operate when it came to being a spy. As they watched, they began to see about eight approaching. It was a mix of various races from off-world, and Gnarl. They bantered back and forth, and they seemed to effect what could best be described as confused looks on their faces. Finally, one of the Gnarl said, "I thought you said that there were three living here."

"I could have sworn I saw them," said one of the off-world people, "I saw them twice, so I know it was not coincidence."

Another Gnarl said, "I have heard muttered amongst the slaves that there have been three, well, what we have to assume are females, moving together in the bazars and asking questions. They had assumed them to be a part of us, so no one has said anything about it to anyone of importance."

"Then they have to be here," the first Gnarl spoke, "The princess would love to know of them. They may make good recruits, if they are trustworthy."

At that moment, a cramp hit Neptune, and she shifted in such a fashion that it caused a golf ball-sized rock to dislodge and bounce to the cave floor. The three stiffened as the eight suddenly took a fighting posture and began to look towards from where the sound came. The three tensed up, hoping that they were not going to have to fight. It was then that one of the Gnarl started to sniff around, and he said, "There are three in here!"

He then postured and said, "Whether or not you mean us good or harm, show yourselves, for you indeed do not have the scent of any creature we know!"

The gig was up, and now they had to hope that this was the resistance movement. If not, they would have to disrupt things and jump through the time streams to get out of there as fast as they could. At this, they all came out wearing their fukus, completely catching the eight off guard. One of them said, "They wear the uniform of the ones that hit his place not a week and a half ago!"

The first Gnarl then said, "We don't know their intent! You three: surrender now or face the price!"

"Sorry, we can't do that," said Pluto, "And this is most regrettable. We were hoping you could be friends."

"Arrest them!" said one of the off-world crew, but that was met by Uranus' attack of World Shaking. However, considering that they may not indeed be enemies, it skipped over their heads and exploded on the wall above them. It only dislodged sand and some small rocks, but the effect was frightening. Before they could react, Neptune followed with Deep Submerge, and slammed them to the wall. Pluto then said, "We are not going to be your prisoners, but before this goes any further, know that you are far outmatched, but we also want to know if you are a part of the resistance of which we have heard."

The eight, knowing they could not win, looked at each other, and they said, "If you want to see peace for all worlds, then come with us."

Back on Earth, there was much in planning to be done. What they needed to know what the Gnarl's next move was. On the other hand, they had to make some kind of a statement. To Endymion, it seemed that the Gnarl thought themselves untouchable. The fact that a CT cruiser had gotten passed their defensive perimeter should have been enough, but they seemed just as arrogant as ever. The inner scouts were together with the kind, and with Usagi and the quartet, pondering the whole situation. At this point, Ceres leaned back in his chair and then started to stare at the five pilots and tap his chin. He suddenly got a smirk on his face and said, "Doolittle."

Everyone looked at him, and both Mercury and Endymion began to get a smirk as well. Serenity was lost on this, and she said, "Okay, what are you three on about?"

"Doolittle's Raid," said Mercury, "Surely you paid attention in world history?"

Serenity just started to rub the back of her neck, and she said, "You remember my grades."

"You still did well enough at the end of things to get a B- average in high school, and a C average for the two years of college you got before the Cataclysm," reminded Endymion.

"Baby, that was 500 years ago!" she said, "You know how long the moon people live, and how we are also immortal because of all that happened back then. Besides…"

She started to have a lot of the old Usagi come out of her and she said, ashamed, "I really haven't put much thought to those kinds of things for years. I didn't think them important anymore."

"He who forgets his history is doomed to retake and study it again," said Venus.

Mars just groaned and rolled her eyes, saying, "Um…that's 'doomed to repeat…'" but Venus cut her off aggravated herself and said, "You know what I meant!"

"After all these centuries, and you still can't get your sayings right!" stated Jupiter, to which Venus said, "And for centuries you have ridden me about that! Can't we knock that off?"

"We don't have time for this!" snapped Endymion, acknowledging that, the more things changed, the more they stayed the same. He then said, "Look, the point is that we have to do the same thing."

"Enlighten us," said Vesta.

Ceres then said, "In World War II, not too long after Pearl Harbor, one Lieutenant James Doolittle led a raid on Tokyo to bomb the city there. Indeed, they did not have enough to do any real damage, nor was the raid intended to do so. However, the effects were a huge blow to Japan."

Endymion then said, "I know that this period is a painful memory for most of us in here, but there is much to be gained from this. Anyway, Japan had been told that it never would be touched by the war, and that there was no way the foe could bomb them. However, this was but four months after Pearl Harbor, and the Japanese had thought it had struck a blow so fierce to the American Pacific fleet that the Americans would have no ability to lash back for a long time. The fact that it happened so quickly, relatively speaking, rattled Japan that they could be touched, and if that America could touch Japan so quickly with a weakened force, what would happen when America did recover?"

Ceres continued, "What we would do is send in a fighter/bomber attack on their home city, on their ports, and cause just enough damage to send them a wakeup call: sue for peace, or prepare to see many of your people die."

Usagi was catching on, and she said, "And you want the Moon Rabbit squadron to lead the raid?"

Serenity said, "Absolutely not! I almost lost you once, and this sounds uber dangerous!"

"Honey, we've been over this before," said Endymion, "She's a teenager now, and actually, much older than that mentally. She can handle herself!"

"Besides, mother," said Usagi, "This is no time to become as you were. You need to be what we all know you to be now. The Sailor Moon of now would not back down from that kind of a challenge."

She just sat back in her seat exasperated, and she said, "It's none of that. It's the mother in me speaking. No mother ever wants to put their child in harm's way."

"Is that why you tried to keep me out of the action at first so many centuries ago?" asked Usagi.

"Because of our connection, that instinct came to be before you were even born," answered Serenity.

Usagi smiled and said, "You really did care about me all those years."

"Of course," she said, "Except that I was worried you never loved me."

Usagi was hit hard with that, and ran up to her mother, embracing her saying, "Oh, please, I loved you the first moment I saw you even then. I just didn't understand it all then. I was so young. All I wanted to do was to was rescue you, and I was so foolish to want to fight the very one I wanted to rescue. The two you were and are were so different that my young mind just wasn't making the connection. I assumed that you had just stolen the crystal and was too incompetent to use it. I had no idea…"

"That I sent you back to bring back myself to set things right?" Serenity finished.

Endymion had to ask: "Then, after that time, why did you do all that you did to make her mad?"

"Well, to be honest," answered Usagi all coquettishly, "I so much saw my mother's face, but only some of what she is now. I just wanted to see if I could bring it out, but again, I think I was too young then to know how to bring that out right. Really, I never wanted to take papa. I just wanted you to get so mad that you would start to take things more seriously and become closer to papa."

She looked down, and the two laughed lovingly as they embraced their daughter, and Endymion said, "All you really did was make me want to be with her that much more, because I knew that meant that such a sweet child could wind up in my life."

They all hugged again, and then Usagi said, "Mother, you really must let me go."

Serenity sighed and said, "Okay, but you will be put on the UES _Luna_ with the wing there. I want to be sure that the jewel of the carriers takes good care of you."

"Will the UES _Chronos_ be repaired in time?" asked Ceres.

"They're working on it round the clock right now," said Venus, "Give it two days, and she'll be battle ready. Why do you ask?"

"It would be great if that battleship were ready to escort the _Luna_, considering…" said Ceres, trailing off.

They all sat silent, and then Mercury was on the horn to her engineers. She called the man in charge of the repairs and she asked, "How soon until it will be ready?"

He gave the timetable, and she explained the reason why she asked. After some thought, he said, "Well, we can make her space worthy and battle ready, though there would be much left to do internally."

"That would be good enough," said Mercury, "How soon?"

"Give us about 12 hours," said the engineer, "She'll be ready."

"Good enough," said Mercury, "Make it so."

She hung up and said to them, "It will be twelve hours."

"Then in 18 hours, they shall go and raise a ruckus," said Endymion, "Then we'll see just how they react!"

3


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

"_You know at Pearl they hit us with a sledgehammer. This raid, even if it makes it through, it'll only be a pinprick... but it'll be straight through their hearts.__" Lt. Col Jimmy Doolittle._

The _Luna_, the _Chronos_, and a handful of destroyers and light cruisers were ready for the raid. They knew it would be an extremely difficult mission with no guarantees of success, considering that the battleship and the carrier would be going in uncloaked, and they would have to launch the fighter/bombers from far enough of a range that it would be at the limits of their fuel to get back to safety. Unlike Doolittle, they had nowhere safe to land if they had to ditch, and even for Doolittle, not every one of his crews made it to safe territory. The quartet with Princess Usagi and a squadron behind them did not have even that. The plan was to hit them, do a bit of damage, shake them up, and get back to the carrier as fast as they could. If they were pursued, they would let the Gnarl give chase and lead them into the rest of the flotilla that came with them. It would not be much more than a pimp slap, but it was hoped that it would be enough of a sting that they would move harshly, and walk right into a meat grinder. They would have to move swiftly to put the war plan together, but once they did, they were hoping to end the conflict swiftly. The last thing anyone wanted would be to see a long a protracted war where millions died, and the resources of many world stripped to support it. Of course, what then would follow that would be the poverty, depression, and famine that would occur for the defeated, and even some of the victors, which would add hundreds of thousands more to the casualty list. Unfortunately, there was no way to let the outer scouts know what was coming, but if it helped them in their cause, it was all the better. The danger was that they would hit with the raid, discover the outer scouts, and put their lives in jeopardy. It all had to be done perfectly, or things could get far worse.

As the ships pulled out and prepared for warp speed, Serenity contacted Usagi and said, "I just wanted to say good-bye and good luck," which was true, but both knew the real reasons why: it could be the last time either see each other's face forever. They both did what they could to hold back the tears, though a couple slipped through. In the mean time CreCre and Ceres spoke, for both were feeling the same concern. They had become quite close since they discovered their connection to each other, and now there was the possibility of this being the last time they ever spoke. However, both were a bit more stoic about it, because both were military minded, and they both had that sense of duty, and they both understood the risks of their professions. Mission came first, and they both knew it. Billions relied on them being able to do their jobs, and that overrode instincts for them to try to protect themselves and each other. They ended the communication, and then Ceres turned on his heel, met up with Jupiter, and they both went into the war room with Endymion and his generals to discuss the war plans with the Moundian generals and the generals of Zoar on how the ground war should go, for, most certainly, there would be such fighting.

On the Gnarl home world, the outer scouts were being led deeper into the mine, and it was there that they came into a cavernous amphitheater. It was now filled with about 1,500 individuals of all kinds of beings, including many of the Gnarl. The leader of the raiding party called ahead to let the rebellion know of what was going on, and every member of the resistance arrived. Sitting on a throne was a brightly clad Gnarl that looked younger than some, and was not as hideous to those not used to seeing these creatures, but they still were what they were. The party took their seats, except for the Gnarl that led them, who then told the scouts to stand at the top, and then he went down to the one on the throne which sat on the stage. When he climbed the stairs up, the one seated seemed to brighten, stood, and announced, "Kruge!" and rushed to his arms. He took her in and said, "Bleetra, my princess, it is good to see you as well!"

They rubbed noses and seemed to be letting of some soft clicks and squeals as they did. She then said, "Who are these strangers you bring?"

Kruge looked back up and signaled for them to come down. The three took their time to advance as now every eye on the room was focused on the brightly clad humans advancing to the throne. They seemed to be warriors by their appearance, one having a sword strapped to her side, another with a mirror, and another with a staff that looked like a giant key. They approached the base of the stairs where two guards then flanked them, and escorted them to the top. Pluto, beginning to put it together, took a knee before Bleetra, recognizing her for what she was, after which the other two scouts followed suit. Pluto then said, "It is an honor to be treated with such hospitality, your highness."

Bleetra seemed to smile gently and nod. Even though the toothy smile would have seemed frightening to some if they had never seen such a being before, she yet seem to move and act with a kind grace befitting royalty, which seemed to make those rattling features seem natural and acceptable. Bleetra then said, "In truth, due to my connection to the throne, technically, you should be considered enemies. However, considering that I wish no longer to see my people be dragged from one conflict to the next, costing families and our world greatly for such exploits, and considering that the blow that was struck to your people was fierce, incurring an equally powerful wrath, we welcome you, and any solutions you could offer."

Pluto then asked, "Then, I assume you wish not this war?"

"I wish to see it ended before it starts," Bleetra responded, "Is it too late for that?"

"Sadly, if who I assume to be your mother has acted like I fear," responded Pluto, "then it is not only our system that is after your people. There are at least two star systems in line with it, and the remnants of a third that want revenge. I fear that conflict is inevitable. We wish it not, but you must understand: what happened cannot go without response. I am certain you would feel the same way if things were reversed."

Bleetra and Kruge both sighed and hung their heads a touch, and Bleetra then said, "Unfortunately, I would be forced to agree. However, could there be another way?"

"Perhaps we could aid you," answered Neptune, "What is your goal?"

"We are slowly building a resistance," responded Kruge, "Once it is big enough, and we can make enough of a blow to her majesty's forces, we could force her to sue for peace."

Bleetra then added, "Do understand that that is my mother," (which confirmed the suspicions of the outer scouts,) "I wish to avoid having to do her harm, lest it look like I tried to murder her and take the throne for myself. Yet, I cannot stand for her actions anymore. The vengeance of two generations is enough. She has to stop mourning. Father taught me and my siblings to be better than that. He did all he could to instill in us the kind of love that great-grandmother had for people, and to rule wisely, because power has to be used responsibly, not the way mother does it."

Uranus rubbed her chin and she said, "Hmm…a bloodless coup…could it be done?"

Pluto then said, "What would have to happen is to take her alive and make her face war crimes. At that, it would not be Bleetra trying to snatch her throne, but the will of the Gnarl that would speak."

"Such a tribunal would have to involve all those that had been wronged," added Kruge.

"So it would be," responded Neptune, "and it would have to be just. That way none could gainsay the actions taken."

Bleetra, who had now retaken her seat, pondered this, and then said, "So, where do we go from here?"

"Well, let me ask you," stated Pluto, "How trained is this crew?"

"Not as well as we would like," stated Kruge.

"Then, if we can get the time and space," stated Pluto, "I want to bring one of our specialists here—Sailor Olympia—and she can instruct them in a crash course of small arms and two fighting forms. One is called Krav Maga, used by our special forces, and one called MCMAP—the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program. Both are deadly, and they can instruct them enough to where they could stand."

"Okay, but where would it go from there?" asked Bleetra.

"It goes into guerilla warfare," said Uranus, "What we can teach can give even a small force like this the fighting force of an entire corps of soldiers. In time, you can break down a whole government, and even gain allies as you go. Being that some of you are slaves in the houses of the foe, they would not know that they nurture a viper in their bosoms."

Pluto then said, "I now go back to our world to explain our position, and bring back the one that can teach with us."

The pair looked askance at this, but Pluto said, "My methods of travel are far beyond any normal person. Trust me on that."

With that, a swirling pink cloud formed above them, and Pluto arose into it and vanished.

Back on Earth, the game plan was being shaped. The Moundian general reminded everyone that they would have to lure them into a battle ground of their choosing. He then asked, "Where would be the best place to meet for a ground assault?"

Endymion thought for a moment, and he then said, "It would be on our world's moon. If we can convince them of some importance to this, they may skip some objectives and come for that first. Truth is, they would more than likely try to take some smaller gains as they approached the middle of the fight as leverage, and to weaken you."

Venus then chimed in and said, "We can do a fighting withdrawal. We can meet the incoming fleet, hit them, move back, and keep them so occupied that they would not care to fight."

The Zoar general stroked the base of his beak, and then said, "That may still not prevent them from trying to invade some of the inhabited areas."

Ceres then said, "Then what we may have to do is put the bulk of the army on our Moon here, and then put at leas a division on what they may consider strategic targets, reinforced by each world's militia that already exists there."

The Moundian general then said, "Leave that part to us. The amount that we can contribute will be more than their puny minds could grasp."

"What about your home system?" asked Endymion, "You can't leave yourselves defenseless, can you?"

"Not unless you can give the enemy incentive to come after you," came a voice out of nowhere.

Everyone wheeled around ready to fight, and then stopped when they realized that it was Pluto who had just newly arrived. Endymion quickly said, "Everyone, its okay: she's the head of the counterintelligence. I assume that you have some news for us, commander?"

"Indeed I do," responded Pluto, "We have contacted a resistance movement led by the crown princess herself and her lover. I have come to retrieve petty officer Olympia and to put her charge of training the group that size about a battalion. What do you have planned?"

"We are planning a raid," responded the king, "It won't do much damage, but it should shake them up psychologically."

"Good," said Pluto, "I'll get the chief and then go back and let them know what is coming. What is the timetable?"

"It will take about five days, but expect it," said Venus.

"Then with your leave, my liege?" asked Pluto.

Endymion nodded and Pluto took off. Ceres then said, "It looks like we may make this short work if they can hit internally."

"Let us hope so," said the Zoar general grimly, "Let us hope so."

Pluto returned with Olympia as if she had never left, and it was then that Pluto informed the princess of what was coming. Both she and Kruge looked wide-eyed and said, "No one has ever tried that and lived to tell about it, much less breach our atmosphere and hit us, save for what your crew had done. Mother and father are still reeling over that one. Another blow like that would absolutely call for a full invasion of your home world."

"That is exactly upon what we bank," said Pluto, "If we can lure them into a trap, we can end this war quickly."

"Is that when you would invade?" asked Kruge.

"We have the Marines for that, and whatever else our allies can add," stated Pluto.

Bleetra pondered this, and she said, "Then we can work from here and ready for the invasion."

Pluto smiled and said, "Now you're getting it."

Bleetra smiled with her and said, "Give me time: I can work over mother. I can have her running in circles."

"Then let's get the training going," said Olympia, "The raid happens in five days."

The vessels approached their targets, extremely fortunate that they did not encounter Gnarl ships in the process. Soon, they were at the spot for the launch. They were at the extreme range for them to get there and back safely, meaning that it would have to go off without a hitch. They set their course so that they could use the star around which their target orbited to mask their movements, and then go in hard and fast, hit the points that would get the most attention, and then get out of Dodge. The intelligence that had been collected gave them good targets to hit, and they were load for bear. The newly formed Moon Rabbit squadron then flung themselves into the deep of space at breakneck speed, each one with locked jaws and a serious look on their faces. Each bomb had a name on it: for Tanaka…for Mufasa…for Hank…for Francine…and other such things, along with, "Remember Nekonia," as a battle cry, as well as, "Remember Princess Saturn!"

This was not just a military strike, it was personal. Along with them was the remainder of the fighter pilots of the ill-fated defense of their home world, Nekonians all. They wanted a piece of the action, and neither crowned head was going to deny them this. However, as they approached, probing satellites began to detect their approach, and Usagi gave the order to destroy them. They knew that they had been detected coming in, yet, by destroying them, it still kept them in the dark against what approached.

Meanwhile, an alert came into the throne room about the destroyed probes. Immediately, Squila shouted, "They invade already? That is impossible! We hit them with enough force to cripple them for some time!"

Bleetra was present for this, sitting on her own throne, as she said, "Dear mother, you have to be right. I mean, an invasion at this point has to be impossible for them."

Squila looked at her out of the corner of her eye, wondering why she suddenly spoke. Up to this point, she had not been involved much with royal affairs, and now she was being seen more, especially those past few days. This made her suspicious more than normal about her daughter who had kept her distance all those years. She wondered just how much her weakling husband had corrupted her, but now there was a chance to correct that. Still, she had to be watched. She said to her daughter, "Well, look who is taking an interest in politics all of a sudden."

"Mother, are we not at war?" she said, "This is my home as much as it is yours, and I feel it is time that I stopped sitting back and got involved. We must all do our part. One thing is not to overreact over every small thing."

"For some reason, I don't trust you," answered Squila, "Nonetheless, you might be right. If it is something, it can't be all that big. The standard patrols should be able to take care of it."

"_You should hope so,_" thought Bleetra, "_because you may have opened up a can of 'Tail Stomp' bigger than you can handle._"

Quickly regaining their game plan, they moved in. They were shocked to see only what would have been considered normal patrols, for the most part, moving around. Indeed, they did seem to move about like they were looking for something, but they were not sure what. They had no idea of the internal hand that was aiding them. As they were about to come out of the place where they could have avoided detection, Vesta wondered what was to happen next. They did not want to break radio silence, but, because they had worked together for so long, it seemed Usagi had read her mind. She transmitted in code and in text, "When we come out in the open, hit full impulse power and double front on the shields. We are going to plunge straight in. Don't worry about a rear attack, because we should be into our targets before they know it. Once past the atmosphere, return to normal shielding, and then hit them hard and then get out of there."

They watched the scanners that would let them know when they would be able to be seen, and counted it down…4…3…2…1… "PUNCH IT!" shouted Usagi over the radios, knowing that radio silence was needless now, and they hit the after burners and moved in swiftly. They had safely entered the atmosphere before the Gnarl could react…just what they were hoping for. Fighters were scrambling in both space and on the ground, but the squadron was screaming towards their targets and over them already. With flash and fire the bombs struck as the strafed targets simultaneously. They then quickly diverted course and began to head out. That was when they met the resistance.

In the throne room, there was chaos. Reports were coming in from all around that a small fighter-bomber force had rushed in, hit targets, and were attempting to flee. The queen, now enraged, wanted to know how they managed to slip in without being seen. It was then she was informed that, because of the smallness of the force, they were not looking, because they were expecting something bigger. However, she was being told that they were now being engaged, and that they would not escape. All she could do now was just sit on her throne and seethe.

Outside, the fight was hard, and about half the squadron was being chewed up before they could get away. However, five craft were being cornered, and there seemed to be too many of them. "PallaPalla thinks were dead!" screamed the pilot of one.

"Just stick with your wingmen," shouted Usagi, "We'll get out of this!"

However, she was not sure just how true her words were as she was being hit on her wings and on the chassis. Nothing vital had been hit yet; however, she knew it was only a matter of time. They were over land now, and in succession, each one of them took disabling blows, and the command was given to punch out. They managed to chute safely, only to be captured on landing. The one in charge radioed in to say that they had prisoners. The queen ordered them to be brought to the throne room to have the satisfaction of executing them herself. Bleetra cringed, but she knew she had to do something. However, any movements to leave the room at that point might mean detection and instant suspicion. She would have to let it play out a bit. "PallaPalla scared," said Pallus, but Juno said, "Don't worry, we're worth more to them alive."

"At least until the queen has her fill of you," snarled one of the guards, who punctuated that with a shove to the back and a, "Get moving!"

In space, the remainder of the squadron was heading back with fighters and some ships in hot pursuit. They Gnarl admiral figured that they had to have support coming from somewhere, and he knew they could lead him to a bigger prize. Sure enough, the fighters were heading to two large vessels. Oddly enough, the captain of one ship, (who had been in on the Nekonian invasion,) recognized one of the ships, and he said, "Well, look who is back from the dead! Let's put her back to the dead!"

As soon as the Gnarl vessels were spotted coming, anti-fighter fire was spilling out everywhere while batteries on both vessels opened up on the approaching ships. This was only to keep them at bay while the fighters boarded. Once on, they did an about face and warped out of there to the rendezvous area. Hopefully, they would fall for the trap. Meanwhile, on the carrier, there were questions about the missing commander and her escorts. There was a question as to whether or not let Earth know what had happened. Indeed, all the fighters did was follow normal protocol, because, in that situation, it was understood that the princess shared the risk and she was just as the others. However, the captain of the _Luna_ said, "No, don't say anything yet. Remember: they are also sailor scouts. If I know the princess, she and her four are going to spank them hard! Besides, the outer scouts are there, and they should be able to help. Let us wait until we know about what happened to them from the outer scouts, and we only say something if needed. We cannot let the queen get upset and overreact. It would wreck everything."

As this was happening, the Gnarl commanders gave the command to pursue, and walked right into it. There was confusion on the other vessel's part, trying to react to the sudden jump in ships, and that was just what the Terrans awaited. The fighters were then re-launched and attacked. This was coupled as the ships began their attack. It was over in short order, and they could say that the raid was successful, but the captain of the _Chronos_ was not willing to concede that until they knew that the princess and the Amazoness Quartet were safe.

Soon, the five were standing before Squila as she seethed and paced before them in orgasmic delight. "Never in our history has anything like what you did ever been done," she snarled, "For that, your entire race shall be wiped out! However, we are going to start with you!"

Cameras were now focused on them, and the queen announced to them that they would be transmitting live their execution. Squila then said, "Behold, you silly Terrans what you have brought onto yourselves! Your silly raid shall be avenged, starting with them. They are guilty of many crimes against us, and now they are about to face their rewards! Bring in the squad!"

She stepped back to her throne as the execution team came in, getting ready to blast them all. Yet, Usagi had a grin on her face, looking right at Squila. All Squila said was, "Defiant until the end, are you?"

"Who says this is the end?" responded Usagi, as she reached under her top for the scepter she hid there. Because her hands were tied behind her back, it made it easy to reach this. Before the guard who spotted it could say anything, Usagi shouted, "LUNAR CANDY HEART ATTACK!"

The colored balls went everywhere and exploded around the guards and the execution squad. Even Squila was getting some of it, and screeched loud enough and high enough to shatter glass. In the confusion, the five loosed their bonds, and they started their unique attacks as well…the flying balls, the plants, the fauna around being called in to attack, and the hand-to-hand strikes. Usagi loved it, knowing that this was going back to her mother, and she knew it would embolden her to strike hard herself. In the chaos, a guiding hand came to them and said, "Follow me if you want to live."

It was Kruge, with the princess right behind, and the five were not about to question it. If they meant harm, the five knew they could handle it. Once the dust settled, Squila was beyond rage so much, no dictionary in the galaxy had a word that could match how she felt. She screamed, "I WANT A FULL INVASION OF THEIR HOME…NOW! MAKE THEM EXTINCT!"

As they five headed down the hall with their liberators, Usagi smiled, knowing that they played right into her mother's hands. This indeed would be a short war!

6


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

"_Beware the ides of March…" Julius Caesar_

Serenity watched the whole thing unfold. At the first, she was about to faint, but then she watched Usagi pull out the wand, and smiled. She knew that the Gnarl was about to get a great surprise. Indeed, chaos spread, and in the smoke, she watched the five slipping out with what appeared to be two of their own. She could only assume that it was the resistance she had been told about, and with seven scouts, and a SEAL amongst them, they knew things were going to get rough.

Meanwhile, in the underground tunnels of the resistance, the five were being taken to safety. Soon, they were in a general recreation area, and Kurge called for Bleetra and the scouts to enter. "Your highness," said, Kruge, "we have rescued them safe and sound."

The five were quickly activating the universal translators on their flight suits just a Bleetra entered with the outer scouts. The three immediately bowed themselves and said, "Your highness; we are so glad you are safe! How was the raid?"

"I am sure it had the effect we wanted," said Usagi, "But we lost half the pilots in the raid."

She looked a bit saddened, and she then said, "If this is war, I don't like it."

"I would certainly hope so, your highness!" said Pluto, "I am glad it is so horrible, or else it would happen far more often than anyone would care for."

Ceres put her hand on Usagi's shoulder and said, "Ma'am, they knew the risks, and talking to them, every one of them were more than willing to do what they did. They considered it an honor."

Bleetra watched the conversation and said, "You are a princess?"

"She is Queen Serenity's daughter," said Juno, and Bleetra said, "Well, it's a good thing that mother didn't know that, or she would have had one huge bargaining chip!"

They all looked at Bleetra and said, "That was your mother?"

"Mother has long been overstepping herself," answered Bleetra, "She needs to be stopped."

The five looked at each other, then began to smile, and then began to get devious looks on their faces. Knowing that the outer scouts were there meant that they had met the resistance and that they must have had something grand schemed. Kruge then said, "Your help would be much welcomed."

Vesta said with a nasty grin, "You couldn't stop us from doing so!"

Squila, after regaining what was left of her composure, called in all her military leaders into the war room to hear what they had planned. By this time, Bleetra had returned. She went in, considering that she had said that she felt she needed to be more involved with things considering the situation. Squila said, "I want this to be a complete victory! I do not want anything left behind that even indicates that their species ever existed! Make everything uninhabitable, and we shall use that as a memorial against all that would dare to oppose us! Now, what do we know?"

"Well, it is fortunate for us that they dictated the terms to us," said the navy admiral, "We told them that there would be no quarter if they would not capitulate, and they fairly well said that they would do the same thing to us by blowing up the ship we sent to deliver the message."

"Therefore, we are justified?" asked the queen, knowing the answer.

"We are most certainly," was the admiral's response. She then asked, "What else do we know?"

"They have a fleet with strong weapons…three times more powerful than our own from what our data shows,"

"But our fleet is three times bigger," said the queen, "This puts things on an even pegging."

"Yet, from our first major fight with them," responded the admiral, "we know that they are new at space warfare, because, though they adjusted quickly, their inexperience showed through. We can clearly use that to our advantage. However, there is the issue of their cloaked ships. Even though we have discovered there is a strong neutron surge whenever one is approaching, but we have to be watching for it, and even then, it is not very easy to detect. Still, we can take them, but it will be at a cost."

Squila was chewing on this, and then she said, "What about these worlds that have claimed alliance with them?"

"They are a rogue factor, your majesty," he answered, "We have no information on that."

She now did not seem too happy, and she looked at them out of the corner of her eye and said, "And just how long will it take to assess that?"

Silence was her response. She was now getting more angry, because she wanted to strike right away, and every day that passed she knew they would be gearing up for the fight. Finally, the intelligence chief said, "About two months."

It seemed like she was ready to snap off the handles on her throne when she heard that, but she calmed herself and said, "Then send out the people that we need to get that information. 'As soon as possible' will not be fast enough!"

"They are as good as gone," was his response, and it was then the army general spoke up and said, "I would say, though, that the ground war may not be that easy to execute."

"How so?" asked Squila in growing frustration.

"We don't know about their army," he answered, "But I do know that they have two kinds of ground forces on Nekonia, and they were fearsome fighters. They had absolutely no back up in them. Each one seemed to fight as if they were three, and they seemed to be as proficient hand-to-hand as they were with weapons. Indeed, I would not think that they are a large force—maybe a couple of corps—because of the fact that there would only be so much room for troops on ships, and I don't think they are trained like we are. Our crews are just as proficient as ground fighters are as they are in naval operations. Still, they could escort army forces, but I think they would be more content to use those army forces for home defense. That could work for us in that we can have our transports filled with our standard troops and put the ships at 50% strength once the naval side of the fight is won. We can send them down as a reserve attack force to put the finishing touches on the fight."

"In the meantime, your majesty," added the admiral, "What we can to is to probe and skirmish…we can go out and find whatever patrols there are and engage them wherever we can. By doing so, we can learn if they have learned, and how quickly they can adapt to things. The time they can use to prepare, so can we."

Despite her frustration, she let it go and said, "Okay, make it so."

She then turned to her daughter and said, "Stay with me, child, and you will learn much."

Bleetra nodded, knowing her mother had no idea just how much she was learning.

Bleetra went back and relayed everything to the scouts. Pluto then had the information fed back to Earth, and Pluto said that the asteroid scouts were going to stay and help wreak havoc with the rest. However, Serenity insisted that Usagi be returned to her. This, Usagi wanted to fight. "But you have a chance to get out of this, baby!" begged Serenity, "I can't lose you!"

"Mom!" responded Usagi in frustration, "We've been over this before!"

"Your highness, in this case, she may have a point," added Pluto, "If they knew who you were, they might have used you as a hostage or something along those lines. There is so much risk having the heir to the throne constantly on the front lines!"

"We can handle it, sis!" chirped CreCre, "Get yourself some rest!"

"You always look out for your wingmen!" snapped Usagi, "You know that. Besides, we work better together, and that's not just with flying! We fight as a squad of scouts."

"We are also your personal protection," said Juno in frustration, "And as your core of bodyguards, we insist you go back!"

Usagi pondered this for a minute, and then she said, "That would mean you would go back as well, because, after all, you are my personal protection, as you have stated."

"But, we're needed here!" responded Pallus, "PallaPalla knows we can make them squeal!"

"Then, where you go I go, and vice versa," responded Usagi.

She had a point, and it was a hard one to argue. After some thought, Uranus piped up and said, "Your majesty, Neptune and I shall add an extra element of protection. If anything happens to her, let it fall on us."

Pluto was a bit surprised to see her reaction, but not by much, because she knew Uranus' attitude sometimes, and such risky behavior was a part of her nature. Pluto said, "Then, your majesty, I do believe that your daughter will be in good hands. Leave it to us. Besides, she is gaining valuable experience in this should, the fates forbid, something happen to you, and she then must take over the throne. Fear not."

"It's not that, it's just…" she stopped and then she said, "Well, the truth is, with all this talk about scout actions and such, I only wish I could be with you again as Sailor Moon. It has been so long."

Neptune chuckled and said, "That is so interesting. At one time, you would have been so reluctant to fight."

"At one time, I was teenage ditz bun-head with no maturity, and no understanding of the need I filled," answered Serenity.

"And this differs from…" said Uranus, letting that one dangle. Serenity began to get red in the face and said, "Hey, Mars is bad enough!"

They all laughed and said, "Now, that's our Sailor Moon!" to which Pluto added, "Perhaps, one day, it can happen. Who knows, depending on how things go, you may get that chance."

Pluto then began to look around and said, "I must close this time stream, for I cannot hold it open much longer. Princess, are you staying?"

Usagi nodded and then blew a kiss to her mother, saying, "Don't worry, we're going to make them hurt: for Saturn!"

Serenity nodded, and the stream closed. Even though she knew her daughter was in good hands, the mother bear in her still was a bit scared. She even felt a bit nauseous, but she wrote it off to nerves, and said a little prayer for her Usagi…her Chibiusa.

The next two months were interesting for the Gnarl, and their grand plans of terror, hit and run, and knowing what the enemy was scheming always seemed to be falling short of what they planned. It seemed like the foe had to be getting jump on them, and Squila could not figure it out, nor could her generals, though it should have been obvious that it had to be something from the inside. The foe was all around her, but the enemy had no face, and time was running short. In space, patrols that were supposed to be trying to find the foe always seemed to be the ones hunted instead of the other way around. Sometimes, it was those cursed CT cruisers. They had become good at detecting the neutron surges, but before they could react, they were being hit from all sides. It was as if the enemy knew that was that for which they looked. They were always seeming to lose up to half of the patrol in the attacks before they could flee, while the enemy only took light casualties, if any at all. They could not blink, lest they found themselves the ones invaded, instead of the other way around. In fact, the way things were going, they feared that they were the ones to be invaded before they could act themselves. As the months passed, indeed, the patterns of a fifth column were showing themselves.

On their own world, the Gnarl military and industry were constantly being attacked, and the size of the attack kept getting bigger and bigger as time passed. What was odder was the fact that the industry that was being hit was only military oriented—it never seemed to affect the industry of the common people, as if whoever was doing it did not want to see the common folk hurt in any way. They even waited for factories to be closed, but struck unpredictably during the off times so that they could not be detected. What they did not know was that the resistance, led by the sailor scouts, was sabotaging everywhere they went, taking down soldiers, blowing up ammo dumps, doing whatever they could to keep things jumping planet side to make it hard to put their full focus on space. Furthermore, the princess was taking detailed notes of every meeting she attended, and giving over the information. However, to avoid detection, what was attacked and stopped was not done in an order of when the events they attacked happened. That meant they would have to let one thing go or another, because, if they went right down the line of things, Bleetra would have been detected right away. Of all of them, she was the one most vulnerable, because she was the one that they least expected to be of the fifth column. Yet, as time passed, Squila was starting to put it together, (she did not become the queen by being stupid.) As she looked around, she began to suspect a couple of generals, a lower ranked admiral, and even her own daughter, knowing what her husband might have been teaching her kids. She knew he had no spine, and was too soft on things. She knew that he might be able to corrupt what she was trying to accomplish, so she was forced to suspect her, though she put her at the bottom of the list.

Nonetheless, she started to prepare for the invasion. Yet, as she did, she also began to try to lay a trap. She began to lay a plan for a major patrol to go near the central system of their enemy as a test run to the invasion, to get a better idea of how to go about it. Of course, such was not really needed. Yet, if it presented an opportunity for her enemy to counterstrike, whoever was foiling her from within would jump at the chance to get such information to the foe. Thus, she came up with three different schemes and presented them in such a fashion as to where only one of the three military heads would be present to see the plan, and her own daughter. The plan was this: if the enemy reacted in such a fashion as to reflect only one of the plans, she had her spy. Of course, there was no intent of actually going through with any of them, but that was the whole point. If, however, the enemy did not react, but began to bolster their position against the invasion plans already in place, she would have no other choice than to finger her own daughter. The reason was that she knew her daughter was clever enough to see a trap when she sees three different plans laid out. She would tell her sources that the real plan goes forward, and that they should prepare. It would be a shame to see her own daughter killed for treason, but Bleetra was not her only daughter. She had a younger one about five solar cycles old, and she knew that she could undo any damage her husband had done and raise her right. It would be no great loss.

On Earth, other things were stirring. The spells of nausea had begun to get worse, and she was late. The "time of women" was soon to be upon her again, and if she missed again, then there was little doubt of what was going on. Sure enough, the time had come and gone, and now she was worried. With that, she sought out Mercury. Within a day, a heavily escorted shuttle went to the castle on the planet Mercury where the small colony the planet's namesake had rule for a personal examination.

Before all the terraforming took place, Mercury was one of the most inhospitable places in the system, and was a planet as such that they knew would never take to terraforming. It was too close to the sun, yet, they found a way to put a colony there anyway. Princess Mercury's palace sat under a vast protective dome, yet much of the colony lived underground, and just deep enough to escape the scorching heat, but not so deep, that the planet's own core would heat in the same way. Thus, an artificial "world" was created there that could hold about 100,000 people, and there was even a small sea surrounding it, with artificial sunlight that cycled in a natural fashion as to simulate day and night. The water was plenteous to aid in the cooling of the colony, which also pleased the princess, because she was still an avid swimmer. Serenity always loved going there when she could, because Mercury kept an interesting collection of ocean life in the water. They would often take submersible craft for the mere purpose of observing all that life together as they socialized. However, this day, it was more business than anything else. The craft entered the dome through a special lock and taken straight to the castle. Once there, Mercury met Serenity with a smile, wearing medical clothes instead of her fine blue gowns that she normally wore. They hugged, and Mercury escorted her to the examination room. After a short time, Mercury looked over the sheets to her dear friend with a big grin on her face, saying, "Congratulations: you are going to be a mother again!"

Serenity was ecstatic. Mercury quickly came around to her side and they embraced. "Just think," said Mercury, "In the midst of a war, and the loss of a dear friend, fate saw fit to allow a blessed life to come through you!"

Serenity sighed and said, "If only it could be her, Ami, (using her friends old name,) if only it could be her."

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	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

"_Oh! What a tangled web we weave_, w_hen first we practice to deceive!_" Sir Walter Scott

Bleetra brought the information to the resistance, and soon discussion turned as to what to do next. As things were bandied about, Bleetra suggested that nothing happen. In fact, those three suspected other than her were frustrated when they found that their plans were ordered stayed by the queen at the last minute of execution. What they did not know was that such things were done outside the presence of her daughter so that, if she were of the fifth column, it would become clear to her when the enemy did nothing to react to one of the three plans. It was also kept hush-hush so that there was no way for Bleetra to know that things had been changed in any of the plans. The whole point was that, if it were one of the generals or that admiral, then the reaction of the enemy to that plan would make clear which one it was. If nothing happened, then she had to know Bleetra was the one involved. Bleetra felt that, to draw any of their friends into a fight would be bad, and she suggested that they not react. However, Pluto thought otherwise.

Pluto smelled something in the whole thing, and she asked Bleetra, "Were you present in all those meetings?"

"Yes," she said, "That's how I know."

"Your Highness," stated Pluto, "She suspects you. In this, she has laid a trap."

Bleetra looked a bit confused at her reaction, and then said, "But, you don't honestly think we should send your people into harms way."

"If nothing happens, she knows you are the one," responded Pluto, "Thus, we have to react in such a fashion as if we were responding to the battle plan, and then set up for failure one of those three. Indeed, to see one of her top military advisors out of the way would work much better. However, would there be a fight?"

Bleetra thought for a moment, and then she said, "Actually, no, because if it was a ruse, she would have nothing there to attack."

Now the gravity was dawning on her. Uranus then said, "Thus, we have to pick one of the three that would impact her the most."

Bleetra thought for a few moments, and then she said, "The majority of the fight will be in space. Yet, do you have good ground commanders?"

"We have our king," answered Neptune, "and he is a very capable commander. We also have General Ceres…"

CreCre chimed in and said, "That's my big brother! He's the best Devil Dog there is!"

"Devil…dog?" asked Bleetra, confused.

Pluto chuckled and then said, "That's one of the nicknames of the Asteroid Marines. They are our naval security and the extension of our navy on the land. They are a different breed, and know only win or die."

"Semper fi, do or die!" CreCre chirped in pride.

"They will be backed up by Princess Admiral Mars," added Olympia, "She has the SEALs in her command, and they have their own motto: do not bother running, you will only die tired!"

Bleetra then asked, "Would that mean two ground attacks?"

"It would mean the Marines attack while the SEALs spearhead and prepare the way for them," said Pluto, "We need to ready for them. I cannot open a portal big enough for both forces, but they have their ways of sneaking in."

Usagi perked up and said, "You mean Rei-Rei is coming?"

"Absolutely, Small Lady," said Pluto with a smile.

After some more thought, Bleetra then said, "Then prepare to react to the admiral's plan, but maybe we can do something to trick them into a fight that will weaken them?"

"Let me communicate back to the crown," said Pluto, "Princess Admiral Venus may have an idea."

Back on Earth, Pluto contacted the crown, and Venus started to chew on this. After some thought, she wondered how reactive their foe would be if they knew that there was something for which to gain out of it. Venus then said to Pluto, "Ask this Bleetra if her mother would jump at the chance to get any member of the crown."

Pluto relayed this back, and Bleetra said, "Right now, if that was there, she may just send enough of a force to deal with it. It would not be to the plan that was originally laid out, but we could react to it."

This was relayed back, and Venus said, "Then we will send only a few ships, for, according to that plan you told me, there would not be much there to fight anyway. However, if we sweeten the pot by telling them the queen herself would be overseeing the operation, there would be much more of a force. We will then call in some help from the Moundians along with a couple of flotillas and strike them a hard blow."

It was then settled. The plan would go forth, and while that was going on, the SEALs could come in and prepare for the allied strike. Perhaps, if they could strike preemptively, then it could end the war before it really began.

Bleetra carried the "news" to the queen that some of her intelligence people let her know that the queen would be overseeing the operation. Squila was overjoyed to hear the news, and she said, "At last, you are showing yourself to be as ruthless as your mother! Well, then, rest assured, there are rewards for such actions, and you will indeed receive what is coming to you!"

Bleetra thanked her mother and bowed her head to her. She then took her leave to her room as the one admiral that Bleetra had earmarked approached her mother. He said, "This is wonderful news! Let us prepare an attack force…"

Squila cut him off with the raise of her paw and said, "Don't be an idiot!"

"But, your Majesty, we…" he tried to say, but she snapped, "Can't you smell a trap when it comes near you?"

"I don't understand," he responded, but she continued; "Only a fool would send their crowned head into harm's way like that! They are trying to draw us out, and it seems that I also have my traitor."

He pondered for a moment, and then said, "You certainly don't mean…"

"I most certainly do," responded Squila, "She must have smelled something herself and tried to turn the tables on you, and get you killed in the process! We send no reaction."

After she said that, she called her guard and said, "Arrest the former crown princess and bring her to the throne room!"

Bleetra was just getting ready to relax when a knock came to the door. She had only opened it a crack when it was slammed opened and she was knocked onto her tail. "THERE SHE IS!" screamed the commander, "GET THE TRATIOR BEFORE SHE RUNS!"

Bleetra had no chance to react as she was trying to wrap her head around what was happening when they grabbed her and pulled her up forcibly. Quickly, they had her in irons and they were dragging her away to her mother. While this was going on, there were cameras all over and lights as what was happening was being broadcast all over the planet. People were lining the halls and thoroughfares observing what was happening, and there were some amongst them, (plants of the queen,) hurling insults and rotten food at her as she passed, trying to get the crowd riled. They then dragged her into the throne room as the royal magistrate and court recorder were there, as well as her mother and father. Grenj looked like he wanted no part of this while Squila looked like she had steam pouring out of her ears. She then arose from her throne and said, "I never would have expected my own flesh and blood to plot against me! You little whore! I should kill you here and now, but I want you to be humiliated before that can happen!"

"But dear," pleaded Grenj, "That is your daughter…"

She slapped Grenj and said, "That beast is not my daughter! She is lower than dirt! As far as I am concerned, she never came from my bowels! Do it!"

With that, they ripped off all her royal markings, and then furthered this by stripping her naked and beating her. "Take her to solitary confinement until tomorrow morning. Make sure there is a heavy guard. Tomorrow, she dies by torture!"

They then hauled her off, but this was not unseen by certain eyes.

Kurge was fit to be tied, and they practically had to do just that to keep him from trying to rescue her that very minute. To do so would have been suicide, and it would have exposed the entirety of the resistance. No doubt, they would torture her to reveal the location of the resistance, something that would actually have been fruitless, considering that Bleetra was going to die anyway, and her death would conceal the whereabouts and other information about the resistance. In other words, Bleetra had nothing to lose. Kurge knew she would indeed have the strength to keep silent, yet, he also knew how slow and agonizing her death was going to be, and he could not stand it. However, the scouts were keeping order. Everyone was starting to fear his or her end, and a panic was beginning to ensue. This was when Pluto and Usagi stepped forward and calmed the crowd. Pluto then said, "All is not lost! The worst thing to do now is panic. We have to remain calm."

"But…but they're going to kill her!" blurted out one girl with tears in her eyes.

"Who says?" chirped Usagi, "Leave it to us! The sailor scouts can handle that! We will have to wait until the actual execution, but they won't know what hit them."

"But there are only nine of you!" blurted out Kurge, "With all that will be there, what chance do you think you have?"

"How long have we been with you, and you don't get it?" piped out Vesta, "We are the best our system has to offer!"

Kurge then said, "Then, if that is the case, then I fight with you."

"No way," responded Uranus, "You will only get in the way."

"Don't be so quick to judge," said Pluto, "He knows all the ins and outs of the area. He can get us into the place we need to be and then we get her out the same kind of way. Without him, we would be blind. We may now know some of those places, but he knows far more than we. Of this, we must take advantage."

"Just don't let your emotions get in the way," said Uranus with a firm scowl, "You have to be clear on the goal or all is lost...got it?"

He nodded and said, "It is very clear!"

"Then we rescue her tomorrow," said Neptune, "And give the empress a preview of coming attractions."

Bleetra cried and cried, being stuck inside what was essentially a box in a wall as to where she had to sit balled up with barely any room to move. She never thought it would come to this. Indeed, she did know that she now had powerful friends, yet, what could they do for her now?

With the rising of their sun, Bleetra was given a sackcloth covering and chained in a kneeling fashion to a cart that took her to the spot of her humiliation and death. What made matters worse was that this was her own mother. She could not believe that she was so evil that she would kill her own offspring without any thought of remorse. Many there actually didn't want her to die considering that they supported the resistance, but did not have the courage to stand up to her, but there were enough shills there to make it look like the people were in support of the actions there. The customary words of doom were spoken towards her, as well as hatred to her, how she had been disowned, and how she was now to pay the wicked price of treason. However, just as they were going to strap her to the torture wheel, there was a sudden exclamation from the rim of the wall over the square where this was going to take place, stating, "Trying to torture and kill an innocent person who only wanted freedom for her people and to stop a war is inexcusable. Pol Pot may forgive you, but I shall not…I the lovely soldier/pilot/princess in the sailor suit—Sailor Chibi Moon!—in the name of the moon…"

And all the scouts said at once… "We shall punish you!"

There they stood in their entire sailor scout splendor. Vines shot up all around Bleetra and lifted her to them. The soldiers raised their weapons to strike, but Chibi Moon rose up her scepter and screamed; "Lunar candy attack!" and the fireworks then began. A few tried to sneak up from behind when Vesta and Kurge came up and clobbered them. The rest came down from the wall with soldiers in hot pursuit. "WORLD SHAKING!" was then heard, and Uranus let loose, bowling over their pursuers like tenpins. The turned a corner to find more when Olympia shot "Fire Soul" forth and set their clothes on fire. She then gave them a demonstration of Krav Maga as Neptune cleared a path with her "Deep Submerge" attack. They got to the secret entrance when more came out, and Pallus let her balls fly, laughing as she watched them all falling over themselves. More vines covered their escape as they headed down the tunnel to safety and the rest of the resistance. When they got to their haven, there was cheers of joy as they said, "Hail to our future queen! Down with the tyrants!"

At this, Kurge and Bleetra exchanged acts of affection common for their kind as the people cheered, and Kurge said, "I am forever in your debt. Thank you for saving her."

"All in a day's work," said Chibi Moon with a thumb's up, "This is what we do, and there are more of us. If things go well enough, you may get to see all of us in action."

"I look forward to that day," said Kurge.

Bleetra still looked saddened, and Kurge said, "Why the face?"

"I can't believe my own mother…" and she started to cry again.

Pluto had to be consoling, yet frank, and she said, "I am sure she is in that mind somewhere. Yet, I am saddened to say that whatever was your mother may have checked out years ago. I just wonder if that compassion can be extracted out of her again."

In the throne room, the situation had become nuclear, on the verge of meltdown. If there were one button to blow up the whole universe at once and still save her home world, she would have pressed it by this point. "That's it!" she screamed, "NO MORE FOOLING AROUND! DESTROY THEIR SYSTEM! ATTACK!"

Her military advisors were trying to tell her to calm down and that they needed more logistics time, but she would not have it. "They have humiliated me for the last time! KILL…THEM…ALL!"

The war was now going to escalate. Meanwhile, Pluto sent word about what had happened, and that they needed to expect an all-out attack. With that, the main SEAL team, led by Mars herself, was dispatched. They had to act quickly; because they had to get the attack fleet out there before the invasion fleet arrived. The way had to be prepared for the Marine invasion. To end this with few casualties was the goal, but they truly wondered if such a thing could ever be possible in a war.

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	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

"_The only easy day was yesterday!"_ _one of the mottos of the Navy SEALs._

Word came in quickly to the Sol system about the impending attack, but they knew they had a bit of time. It was only a small sliver of time, but they had one, and they would not waste it. Endymion gave the command to Mars and left it there, knowing she was more than capable of handling herself. Two CT cruisers would go in, but carefully, considering how they had figured out how to watch out for neutron surges when a ship under cloak was in the area. They would have to be swift, dropping off the team, going back out, doing orbit work, and then going to the next phase. Normally, it was to get the team out and get to safety, but in this case, the team was to stay there and attach themselves with the resistance, raise some Cain, and prepare things for the Marine invasion. Mars relayed the mission and said in her normally fiery way, "Well, are we ready? This is going to be hard."

One saying, "Hey, if it don't suck, we don't do it", answered this.

Another said, "They only easy day was yesterday!"

This was followed by a loud cheer from her sailors, and she said, "Then we know what we must do. Let's get her done!"

"READY TO LEAD, READY TO FOLLOW, NEVER QUIT!" was the thunderous response.

With that, they all rushed aboard the cruisers and prepared for launch. For them, there was no fanfare or even notice to those around that particular naval base that anything was going on, for they wished to keep it covert as could be. With a quick thrust and tall wake, they were gone, and then vanished from view.

During this time, Ceres and Jupiter were preparing for the fight. Jupiter knew that her Shore Police may not see actual direct fighting considering their job, yet, at the same time, if they were needed, they may end up on the land invasion. Therefore, they both gave the briefing. The first thing that happened before that was a system-wide alert for all active military personnel and reserves to report to their stations, as well as the world guards of all inhabited spheres in the system. For 500 years, things like this had been trained for, but this was the first time in all that time that it had not been a drill. However, instead of there being issues, it went like clockwork in instinct. The reason for this was the fact that the people of the Sol system now lived for an incredibly long time, much as it had been in the Old Moon Kingdom. This was due to the Legendary Silver Crystal. It was the scouts and the royalty that had the advantage to the near immortality they had due to their close proximity to the crystal when Serenity had used it to rescue the remainder of the human race I the aftermath of the Great Cataclysm. There were some that were there that had been around for at least 200 years, so they had remembered how it had been and all the changes that had passed in that time to keep it up to date, so there was leadership in place to make sure it all went off without a hitch. Once the naval and marine side was in place, the general briefing was broadcast fleet-wide and system wide.

Jupiter was the first on, and she said, "The Silver Millennium Kingdom has seen peace for 500 years, and has always hoped that this peace would never be shattered. However, the grim reality of the situation has reared its head. It is possible that we could have maintained that peace longer had we not decided to explore the reaches of our galaxy, knowing that not every race we encounter may be friendly to us. However, there was an evil out there waiting for us, and evil that, had we not explored, it eventually would have found us. The truth is, that could have been worse, because, if he had not encountered what we did when we did, it could well have been that what would have hit us could have been far stronger. Further, it could have been a disaster, considering what happened at the battle of Nekonia, because we would have lacked the actual combat experience to repel the invasion. Though it was a sad day for us, the bloody nose we got gave us the wake up call we needed, and now we are more prepared than ever, with allies, to face the enemy. We of the Shore Police may not see actual action, considering our job of ship security. However, we may aid the ground attack on the enemy home world, so the purpose of my phase of this briefing is to inform you to be ready to fight. You may be shoulder to shoulder with you army and marine cousins in this fight just to have bodies on the ground to overwhelm our foes. Yet, know for certain that you will be vital in the occupation that will most certainly come should we win the day. You will be vital in restoring order to a defeated foe, keeping the people safe from those who would seek to exploit the situation, as well as from those elements who would seek to become terrorists and try to keep up a vain effort to win an already lost war. Therefore, fight bravely and well, stay strong, and keep vigil: you are vital to the cause."

Ceres now took the lectern and had his say: "As always, the Marine Corps will be leading the way into places angels fear to tread, as we will be the first to contact the enemy on the ground in the invasion directly. They will already be shaken because of the work of the SEALs heading there as we speak to soften them up and put them in derision before we come. Yet, no matter what happens with them, know that your foe will fight fiercely, because we already know that they fight with no honor, and are bloodthirsty warriors who do not know the meaning of the word 'mercy'. However, they have declared that a fight with them will be one with no quarter, and that means, if that is the way they wish to fight…well…we aim to please, and we will oblige them. Therefore, when you strike, hit with a sledgehammer blow! Make them pay for the decades of interstellar crime, and show them the wicked price for this! Remember, there are many there that want peace. If they wish to aid us, we shall do all we can to make that happen. We are not there to wipe them out, but to make sure that they never become as they are now ever again. We will help those people who wish for peace to know freedom, and help those that wish for war realize they never should have wished for such. Understand this: not every one of you is going to outlive this. If some of you do not have the stomach for the fight, opt out now, for we shall have no cowards in our ranks. 500 years of peace could have made us complacent, and lazy—not ready for the fight. However, as you know, all those years that I spent, first, as a Command Sergeant Major, and then as your supreme corps commander, complacency is one thing I have never tolerated, and so I know each of you is ready to do what is expected of him or her when the time comes. Therefore, if your fate is to pay the ultimate price, then make sure you die well and bring a few of those fools with you as you do, and die like a Marine! Go into the afterlife and meet the cheers and glory of your fellow Marines that have gone before you to welcome in a brave warrior that honored them by not shirking their responsibility and gave all to assure victory. Quit ye like men, and prepare for the fight!"

Everywhere there was a Marine watching, a thunderous "OORAH" was heard. Ceres knew they would do their jobs.

While that was happening, Venus was addressing the fleet. She stood up tall and proud, spoke with the eloquence of a politician, and said, "Centuries of training and design are soon to meet in what shall be the greatest naval battle in recorded history. The Navy has always been there to extend the arm of strength to the lands from which they came, and it is no different now. They have always cleared the way, and insured that the extension of the fight was carried to the shores of the foe. This means that we must fight well. We learned some valuable lessons from Nekonia, and after the skirmishing that we have done that has led up to this point, we are ready to fight hard. We shall be the ones to make first contact with the foe, and will face some of the harshest fighting. Yet, I know you all can stand proud and strong, seeking never to dishonor your vessel, your comrades, your homeland, and your queen. Make them squeal, and make them regret every ounce of what they did at Nekonia! As Admiral Horatio Nelson said—now is the time for all good men to not give up the ship…"

At that, one of her advisors tugged her elbow, and she leaned over as he whispered into her ear, turned red, and then said, "…to come to the aid of their country."

With that, she ended her speech, as red as a beet.

Meanwhile, the CT cruisers began to approach their targets. They rolled in at full impulse power to assure that, if they were detected, there would be no time to react. They were fortunate that they were coming in during the day. The fireball they would create would have been far more visible and detectable at night as they entered the atmosphere. While that was going on, the resistance began to place bombs and traps in military areas preparing for the fight. The ships landed well out to sea and then, still cloaked, approached. Then, just outside of view, the ships stopped and anchored. Land shuttles designed for military use were then released, packed with SEALs, which submerged and headed for land. They approached north of the city well north, and were met by the resistance movement. Mars came out and embraced Usagi, and then greeted Kurge and Bleetra. Bleetra then asked, "I still cannot understand the mission."

Mars got a smirk on her face and said, "To raise as much Hell as possible!"

The ships, now having fulfilled that phase of the mission, took off. They then achieved orbit, and then found the space stations that were tending to the needs of the vessels there, and there were several in anchor. With that, they opened a bay and started to shove out the back mines. They were designed to spread out and surround the area where the ships were in anchor and then attach themselves to whatever moved from there, but not to friendly vessels. However, as the last of the mines were laid, they were heading out, and ran right into two heavy cruisers outside the mined area. They insured that they did what they could to keep from being detected, but the vessels were able to see the surge and the slight star pattern distortion that normally comes with a cloaked vessel. Because they had come head on, it was easier to catch them, and battle stations were called immediately. Being detected, being cloaked did them no good, and they came out, knowing that they may have to fight their way out. Because they were torpedo cruisers, they could pack a punch, but this was more than what they could handle. Thus, they fired a volley and started to try to get out of there. The Gnarl cruisers shook from the hit, and they were hurt, but not nearly enough. They fired at the fleeing ships, and one of them was hit in the warp engine. It did not destroy the ship, but the ability to warp out was gone. The good ship tried to swing around to get survivors, but the wounded ship chastised them to get out of there. After minor protest, they complied, and the Gnarl focused on the wounded ship like vultures. It was not long before a few other ships outside of the minefield joined them and pounded mercilessly the wounded ship. The escaping ship was silent, knowing the fate of their friends, and knowing the sacrifice they were willing to make to insure that the mission went forward. They would not be forgotten.

Planet side, the SEALs were unaware of what had happened, and continued to march. However, they were more careful due to the seeming extra amounts of security that was cropping up. The crown was indeed aware that the Amazoness Quartet and Usagi were still at large, as was the princess. Now, with the attack in space, they had to figure something was up. The vigilance therefore was at a heightened state. They thus retired to the underground caverns to plan. After a few days, the SEALs went to work. They worked in the dead of night laying bombs on shore defenses and batteries that could hit both planet and airborne targets. Once that was done, they started their asymmetrical warfare. That was when they, with the resistance movement, started to make their first attacks. They would sneak in and hit ammo dumps, weapons factories, logistics facilities, housing for the troops, and such like. Things were blowing up as if it was New Year's Day! Squila was furious. It was frustrating to her to have a foe that seemed to strike like ghosts. Any time they were actually engaged, they had the most mysterious attacks. Along with standard shoulder arms, they also seemed to hit with strange flame attacks of various kinds. They also seemed to be able to anticipate the movements of her troops before they were even made. This made it seem that they were impossible to kill. In fact, they could not even score a hit, and that their foe was just as skilled hand-to-hand as they, if not more so. Their leader with the stringy black fur on her head seemed the most vicious. One tale told of how she, with just three others, entered a troop supply warehouse, and prepared to demolish the place. They were engaged, but they were already heading for cover as if the foe knew they were coming. This was followed by a firefight, and that term carried more than one meaning. The one obviously in the lead then screamed some loud phrase that seemed like gibberish to them, considering they knew not the enemy tongue, and then a flaming bow formed in her hands, followed by a shower of flame bolts that kept the foe at bay. However, with all the fire attacks, they were actually being able to defend themselves and accomplish their goals at the same time. The four managed to slip out, and the soldiers barely got out of there with their skin intact. Many needed supplies were going up in smoke. If it came to the point where they had to defend the planet's surface, (and because this was about the third time they had been attacked on the surface, making such an invasion more likely,) they would be hurting. However, asking for terms was far out of Squila's mind. All it did was make her more enraged. Indeed, a bad omen was cast over the kingdom.

While all that was going on, progress in exploration was still happening. The new world _Serenity_ was still being studied as was intended when the UES _Artemis_ first landed there. Yet, as they studied, they came across the most unlikely thing. There were Nekonian scientists amongst them, considering that the Nekonians really did not have anywhere to go at that point, and threw themselves into the service of the Silver Millennium Kingdom. They were doing a dig, and came across the first evidence that any kind of sentient life had been there. In time, they uncovered what looked like a settlement, and it appeared to be about 200 years old. As they were now doing some fine-tuning on the exploration, they came across some computer storage devices, and the blue team attached their laptop super-servers to them. They were then slack jawed as they saw the language was Nekonian! They had not yet learned to be proficient in the tongue, but the Nekonians were more in shock than the others were. As they read, they could not believe that such information had been lost. It seemed that, back then, Nekonia and the Gnarl were actually allied! They were working to settle worlds, and this world was designated as a place where they could establish a cooperative society and they intended to call it something that would mean "planet of peace." After sitting in some stunned silence, the Nekonians started to cry. When asked why, their lead scientist said, "This means two things: we have a chance to save two societies! We can have a new world upon which to live, and we can bring about this treaty as a negotiation tool to bring a lasting peace…if we can dethrone their ruler!"

One of the blue team then said, "Further, if we are able to capture their leaders alive, we can use this violation of the treaty between your two worlds as a mark of war crimes against them."

Suddenly, in the brink of what looked like it would be a bloody war, a cause to celebrate emerged, and celebrate they did!

The news came to Serenity and Endymion, and Serenity said, "Yay! We can put an end to this war!"

However, Endymion said, "Darling, I don't think it will be that easy."

She looked depressed right away and said, "Why do you have to take the fun out of it?"

Luna then added, "Your Majesty, convincing their ruler to recognize the treaty may not be as easy as that. Besides, they think they are the ones wronged by us, and even if they were to acknowledge the treaty, they would still come after us. They aided in the destruction of Nekonia for far less."

She got depressed again, and both Endymion and Luna began to console her. Endymion then said, "We will do all we can to ensure that this is a short fight."

She embraced him and said, "For the sake of our new child, please, make it true."

He caressed her, not answering, not knowing if such a promise could be honestly given.

4


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

"_General, soldiering has one great trap: to be a good solider you must love the army. To be a good commander, you must be willing to order the death of the thing you love. We do not fear our own death you and I. But there comes a time...__We are never quite prepared for so many to die. Oh, we do expect the occasional empty chair— a salute to fallen comrades— but this war goes on and on, and the men die, and the price gets ever higher. We are prepared to loose some of us, but we are never prepared to loose all of us. And there is the great trap General. When you attack, you must hold nothing back. You must commit yourself totally. We are adrift here in a sea of blood and I want it to end. I want this to be the final battle._ " _General Robert E. Lee_

"_The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his._" _General George S. Patton._

Endymion was looking at a hologram of the solar system as it stood at that second, and he began to try to get a feel for where the attack was going to occur. He had the help of the Moundians for ground troops, but it would do them no good if they did not know from where they would approach. The odds were that they enemy knew enough about where the nerve center of everything was, and that would be the logical choice for attack. However, would they be direct? Would they attack elsewhere and try to split the troops to weaken the defense? He would only have three flotillas back defending, but he would also have the aid of the Zoarians that would make up the gap. As he pondered this, Venus said, "Since I will be in the lead attack on the Gnarl at their home world, I have asked the Zoarian grand admiral to take command of the three flotillas as if they were his own."

Endymion looked at him and asked, "Do you know enough about our vessels to command them to be effective with your own?"

"The weapons you possess and how they are situated tell me all I need to know," he said, "It will be fine. Looking at your system, I would believe that the best way to do this would be to funnel them to a battlefield of your choosing."

"Can you force this?" queried Endymion.

"With a bit of a ruse on our part, that would be easy," he answered, "We just have to make them believe that some high ticket item lay in wait on that point, but under-guarded, and then lead them to it. However, what shall await them is their doom."

The Moundian general looked at the system, and he pointed to Earth's moon and said, "How good are your men in lower gravity environments?"

"They are trained for any kind of gravity," answered Endymion.

"My troops have ways of compensating for that as well," was the general's answer, and the then said, "Then, like all war, we have to make a gamble. If we can lead them there, we can hope that they have no ability to handle the lower gravity, and then take them out there. Even if not, we would still have the upper hand in that we have them on the ground of our choosing, and then can be ready for it."

"Then, let's set up the naval plan while you two prepare for the defense," said the Zoarian admiral, who then asked, "What would be the bait?"

Serenity chimed in and said, "Make them think that I am there. Yet, I will be far from here."

She seemed to have a look on her face of one lost in thought, and seriousness. At this point in her life, she was indeed more mature, but had old Usagi-like moments. Yet, she would not be queen if she were as she had been. It was at this moment that the Princess Serenity of the Old Moon Kingdom came forth and spoke. She continued, "I need to be at the big fight."

Endymion then looked at her oddly and asked, "Is that wise?"

Luna then said, "Actually, I see logic in her majesty's thinking. If you were both here, and things went bad, it would plunge the war into chaos. Even if we were to win there, we would have to come back and retake our homes with only the princess to lead, and I don't know if she could do it as of yet. She is mature, but having such great responsibility put on her so fast would be bad."

"She stands just as much of a risk there, if not worse," worried Endymion.

"If you feel you could protect her better here," said Luna, "It may be true to some extent, but if you were to fail, they could capture her and force us to surrender, and then all would be lost. This way, there is a much better chance that one crowned head can survive to carry on the fight."

"Then I shall go on the UES _Luna_," said Serenity, "Venus would be commander of the attack, and I leave it to my field commanders, but I would be able to add my advice if need be."

Venus looked at Serenity firmly and said, "Your Majesty…Usa-chan…your presence may make our ships over-cautious."

"I would think it would spur them on," interjected the Zoarian Admiral.

Serenity came up to Venus and said, "Mina-chan, it will be like the old days of the Sailor Scouts. We will be together, and together, we can do anything. If my daughter and husband are willing to take the risk, so am I. Truly, it frightens me just as much as it used to, and I would rather not fight if I can avoid it. You saw how much I wanted Usagi to come home. Yet, if she is willing to go into harm's way, I must be willing. Just be there for me, okay?"

Venus smiled and hugged her old friend, saying, "I will be there for you," and then she pointed at her belly and said, "And that one as well."

"Then, let's get to it," said Endymion, and the planning began.

All but three flotillas would be in the invasion, aided by the Moundian fleet. The Zoarian army would be aiding the invasion as well, and there would be a new addition ship-wise. The Saturn Flotilla would be there, but there would be a second battleship with them as well. It was commissioned to be built right after the Battle of Nekonia and was the fastest any battleship had been built, aptly named the UES _Hotaru._ They wanted it to be that she could be there for her revenge, even if only by spirit in the name of that ship. They would have to gain superiority of the orbit, and then begin the ground attack. The Sol system ships, being that they could go planetside, would carry the invasion force, and attack a point that would draw the foe out to open ground. The reason was that, if they went for Gnarl Central right away, the Gnarl would turtle up, and then it would be a room-to-room, house to house fight. It would not be an invasion as much as it would be a long, bloody siege, and those besieged would have the edge, and could win by attrition alone. However, all knew that this would happen to some extent, yet, the invasion would have to make them have some kind of response, and if they could lessen such a conflict, then so much the better. As the forces were boarding the ships, Serenity showed up in the Sailor Moon uniform that she gained when Tom first got involved a thousand years before. However, she suddenly said had this urge to not go to the _Luna_. It was as if she heard a voice say, "_No, please go on board the Hotaru. It would be much better._"

The voice sounded familiar, but Serenity could not peg the voice. Still, the urges were great, and she said to her adjutant, "I've changed my mind on the vessel…put me on board the _Hotaru_."

They all looked oddly at her, but they did as they were commanded. However, word soon came to Venus, and she came out to meet her, saying, "Your majesty, that ship will be in the thick of it! At least on the _Luna_ you would not be in the thick of it so much, as the fighters would be out doing the work for you, and the need to protect the carrier would keep it out of the thick of the fight."

"Venus," she said, "I don't know why, but I just feel that I need to be on the _Hotaru_. It is as if a spirit is urging me. I feel drawn to it somehow."

Venus was confused at this, but she then said, "Then, do what you can to stay out of the main battle. Please, we love you dearly."

Then Venus teased and said, "Besides, it would be a great waste of all those centuries keeping you safe, when the scouts could have found so much more to be doing."

Serenity got a look of mock rage and amusement on her face as she said, "Ooh…I'm going to get you for that!"

Just as she was about to grab Venus for a bit of playful grappling, they both saw Mercury gearing up as well. "What are you doing?" asked Serenity.

"There are several reasons for me to be with you," said Mercury, "I have an obligation to the child you now carry. I have to coordinate the medical ships for the aftermath, and my Sea Bees will be down there, and I intend to lead them."

"Why would the Sea Bees need to be there?" asked Serenity, but Venus then said, "They have to be there to aid in the building of a port wherever we gain a beachhead. The Zoarian army will need this to follow behind and hold the gains of the Marines. Our army will follow this, and the Moundians as this is a joint effort. In order to do that, we have to start setting up the port right away, and that means as the Marines advance. Trust me: the Sea Bees are combat engineers, which mean they are prepared to do their jobs under fire."

"Wow, that means that all the scouts will be there in one way or another!" said Serenity, "Then, knowing my friends will be there will make me feel so much safer and stronger."

"Perhaps we can do some work together when we get there," stated Mercury, to which Venus answered, "Let's get the first part done before we get all gung-ho about it."

They nodded and got on their respective vessels.

The plan was to invade and hit the Gnarl fleet first, and to have the SEALs destroying on planet batteries that would foil planet entry, and then endanger the invading ground force. When Serenity got to the bridge, the captain immediately gave way, but Serenity said, "No, it is your chair."

"Your majesty," said the skipper, "regulations require I recognize your rank. Please, do sit."

When Serenity saw that it could cause a bit of strife, she took the seat, but then told her, "When it comes time for the fight, I expect you to do the commanding, however, if I want something to happen, can you say it to them in naval terms. I'm not quite up to speed on the latest jargon."

The skipper smiled brightly and she said, "With pleasure, your majesty!"

With that, all ships communications linked up and Serenity said, "Venus, on your word."

"Aye, aye, your majesty," answered Venus, who then said, "One eighth impulse power and take us out to sea. Prepare for space launch!"

The ships all pulled out to fanfare as they headed out to sea, and prepared for the largest naval battle in history.

Word came to the SEALs and the resistance that the attack was coming. This was their cue to prepare for the attack. At once, the resistance, which had grown quickly by that point due to the efforts of the princess and the scouts, began wiring batteries and defense positions, with the SEALs taking more of the military and high-risk missions to themselves. They would be ready. In the meantime, they started to plan false information that the Sol system army was planning to put the bulk of the defenders on their home world, but that they had made the mistake of putting their queen on the moon of that planet. This meant that they needed to put a distracting attack to their home world, and a few other places and make them think the fight was there. They then needed to capture their queen, force them to surrender, and then, once under their control and once their military was dismantled, they were to then annihilate them as the queen commanded. They were not going to let on what the real intent was for obvious reasons. With that, the invasion fleet prepared to leave. However, as some of the ships were heading out, many of the ships heard the sound of something clamping onto their hulls if they happened to be standing near it. Tremendous explosions everywhere followed this, and about one quarter of the total vessels available were destroyed. Already, the Silver Millennium Kingdom had struck the first blow, not counting what had already been done. This seemed to be a bad omen to the military commanders of the Gnarl, but Squila pressed forward. Oddly enough, the route they would take would cause them to bypass the invading fleet, and that miscalculation would cost them some. As this happened, the Moundian fleet joined them from another direction, and the two coupled up and prepared to invade. When hailing frequencies were heard, Venus and Serenity were both pleased and surprised to see Queen on the screen. Queen then said, "Ah, it is refreshing to see that Serenity has not shirked her responsibility and has decided to lead the attack as I! Now, together, we shall crush the foe with a mighty hammer blow!"

The pair did not know how to respond, considering that, they were more anxious to keep Serenity out of harm's way rather than in the thick of the fight, but everyone else yelled "HOOYAH!" in response. They were ready for a fight, and it seemed that all Serenity being there was doing was boosting morale. Serenity then said, "Then, let us make it hard and fast so we can end this. No one wants a protracted war."

"No one seeks war at all," said Queen, "For if they do, they are fools. However, I share your sentiment, and itch for this fight!"

At this, the scouts were so glad that such a fearsome foe was on their side.

In the Sol system, the fleets were spread out, trying to anticipate their arrival. They had three dimensions to work with in space, and so it was hard to anticipate the approach. However, the attacking fleet was detected, and as it approached, a small section broke away and headed for Mars while the bulk seemed to be heading for Earth. The Zoarian admiral was not sure if that was a ruse, or a real threat, but he did not have much time to ponder. He then gave command for the three Earth flotillas to take that out, and for the rest to meet the bulk of the invading fleet. They were not sure if they would be able to stop the invasion, considering the goal of the attackers would be to get past and into a position to launch the ground shuttles. Considering that, he called back one carrier to prepare to contend with that, and the fighter escort for such craft. On Mars, the report came that the Planet Guard needed to be ready to repulse the attack, but the three flotillas were on the way. Once that happened, the battleship batteries opened up. They had range on the Gnarl, and they took advantage of this. At that, the Gnarl countered by launching fighters, and Sol responded in kind. In the mix, the CT cruisers slipped behind and started to open up on the rear. The invading ships then split to deal with the new attack. As that was happening, transports were beginning to be launched, and the fighters turned their attention to that. Of course, that drew some of the attacking fighters away to meet this threat, and this allowed some transports to go down. However, it was obvious that what they were sending would not be enough for a good attack. Worse, when the ground forces readied for the attack, the shuttles just sat there. Before long, a few platoons went out to see what was going on, and it was then they discovered that the shuttles were not even occupied, sent down by remote control. As they began to transmit this, the attacking ships suddenly sped away towards the main body of the attack. Now they were not sure if they had been fooled or not.

The Gnarl was convinced that they had pulled a coup, thinking that they had split the enemy forces and weakened them. The more transports they were able to land on their target with less interference, the better off they would be. However, they were not as fooled as they may have thought. The same move was happening towards earth, and the Zoarian admiral was ready to give command to attack, but Endymion transmitted to ignore it. After a bit of protest, Endymion explained that the Gnarl played right into their hands. They bought the bait that the queen was on the moon, and that they were now going for everything. When the transports landed on Earth, nothing happened. They, like the others, were empty. As the real invasion was heading for its target, the allies descended upon it. However, because of the massive naval battle going on in orbit, enough slipped through to insure that the ground fight was not going to be resolved quickly. Yet, instead of the Queen, they were going to run smack into the entire Millennium regulars, reserves, all the planetary guards, and a corps of Moundians just itching for a fight. As that was going to take place, the Navy now turned its efforts to insuring that, even if they won on the moon, there would be nothing for them to which to return. If the defenders failed, they would not have enough to occupy if the counter invasion succeeded. They could come back and finish the job. With that, the defending craft spread out into a new battle attack, very much resembling a flock of attacking birds, swooping and clawing at their prey that now seemed helpless to stop the attack. The Gnarl tried to counter, but before they knew it, they were surrounded with nowhere to run. However, despite the fact that they were now outnumbered and outgunned, they were not about to surrender, even though terms were offered. Once refused, the Gnarl admiral said, "We would prefer death before dishonor!"

This was answered by the Zoarian admiral with a sinister look in his eye as he said, "To avenge our people, we shall now gladly oblige you! ATTACK…NO MERCY!"

With that, the skies above the moon looked like a fireworks display as the moon defenders looked up to see the fight while waiting for the attackers. The carnage was horrible, and they were glad that they were not up there to see more than the pyrotechnics display that they were now seeing. The flashes went from horizon to horizon, and before long, debris was hitting the atmosphere and burning up, adding to the display. One man mentioned, "If it was not what it was, it would almost be beautiful."

The invading army began to approach, but the defenders moved in to meet them. Yet, as they did, Endymion sent a message to the general, saying, "Surrender all your forces: you are trapped here as your ships are no more. Do not share their fate. Be sensible!"

The response was clear: "We shall vanquish you! Once we have your queen, you shall surrender, regardless of what happens above!"

At that, enemy artillery started to fire. However, the first volleys were way beyond their target as the batteries began to try to get a feel for the gravity and compensate. That was the defender's cue. They charged forward on all fronts: mountain, plains, and coastlines. Since they had no ships that could go to the surface, the Millennium ships came in to add to the defense. Yet, despite not being used to the gravity, they began to adapt quickly, and the defenders sunk into their defenses tight. Because, If they wanted to make this siege warfare, then so be it. The Gnarl would thus beat their heads in trying to dig out the defenders as they were being hit by the off shore batteries of the Millennium ships. Still, they plodded forward, and it was sad to see that this was not going to be resolved in one day. The one thing Endymion did do was to draw the fight away from the cities and to bring it to the open country. They had to; otherwise, all they would eventually be defending was piles of rubble. The Moon had not seen action like this since Queen Beryl's War.

The Gnarl artillery was relentless, pounding position after position, but gaining no edge. The defending artillery, however, having elevation in many cases, was wreaking havoc on the defenses, and the Gnarl blasters were not proving as much of a match to the AK-01 rifles that the defenders were using; caseless ammunition propelled by electromagnetic pulse. Often, the round would go through two or three attackers, but this did not stop the attempts to advance. The Moundian disruptors, however, were harsh, as they, if they did not kill their target, then they left massive wounds that would have no remedy in some cases. At first, the defenders, following normal odds of defenders, were making the Gnarl suffer ten losses to every one the defenders were receiving. Once this was seen, the Gnarl pulled back some, and began to turtle up themselves, attempting a style of trench warfare, hoping to outlast the defenders. They would go underground, as their species of creature were always great at tunneling. The hope was to live off the land and starve out the defenders. Indeed, for four days, things seemed to be at a stalemate, and the Gnarl were attempting to tunnel under the defensive lines into the city where they suspected the queen to be. On the surface, armored vehicles and tanks were battling it out in a loud cacophony of battle, hoping to press things that way, and at the same time, keep their attention away from the business underground. However, they would soon be the one surprised.

Word had come back that the Gnarl was trying to tunnel, and the Moundians loved what they heard. The Moundian general then said to Endymion, "They may be good at that, but WE wrote the book on this kind of warfare! Let us handle it."

"I will lend you some Sea Bees," said Endymion, "They can give you the supplies you need, and show you the best places to tunnel as well as fight alongside you."

The Moundian general then nodded and went to it.

After taking some soundings and looking at the logical places to go, the Moundians began their approach. Indeed, the Gnarl was good, but the Moundians were swift and many in their work. The entire corps was on it, and with the aid of the Sea Bees, and their incredible strength, they could out work 15 Gnarl per Moundian. By day six, the Gnarl was looking for their biggest advance, and then they began to hear the sounds of tools and rapid work on the other side of the rock wall. They froze in fear, now scared of what this meant. Could their foe have been counterattacking unbeknownst to them? They could not believe it, because they had been at it for that long, and there was no way they could have achieved such gains. However, a group of the Gnarl near that point was vaporized as a bright beam blasted its way through and took them out. The Moundians were now quickly widening the hole and coming through. The Gnarl was unprepared for such an attack, as they figured that the defenders could not have worked as quickly as they had, not realizing the prowess of the Moundians in the attack. Within minutes, defending troops were pouring in like Niagara Falls, making short work of the Gnarl engineers. Soon, the digging was subdued, and Endymion then said to the Moundian general, "How quickly could you convert the tunnels to allow for armored transport?"

"We were one step ahead of you, your majesty," he responded, "We did this going in, and now we shall quickly widen the tunnels for that purpose."

"Excellent!" shouted Endymion, "Now begins the counterattack! All units, attack!"

The Gnarl were beginning to wonder how the progress of their engineers was going, wondering if they could commence. There was only so much longer they could sustain the surface fight. They would soon receive a harsh answer. At all points where the tunneling began, defending units began to pour in like an army of fire ants. Considering the alliance, this might have well been what was attacking! The Gnarl was suddenly in disarray. They had been beaten at their own game! A panic ensued within the Gnarl commanders, and a recall of all attacking units was made. This, however, was a mistake, as the troops on the surface took advantage of their retreat and poured out of their defenses as if they were a river of lava. The Gnarl was hit from both sides, and when the dust settled, there was a call for surrender of the Gnarl, and reluctantly, the few survivors dropped their arms.

As they assessed the casualties, the defenders had light losses comparably speaking. The Moon cities were left intact, yet much of the countryside was torn up. They hoped that they could get the foresters out there before long to undo the damage done. In space, however, things were not as good, as the defending ships and fighters lost about a third of their compliments, yet, the attackers were those that took the greatest losses. None of the Gnarl ships survived the fight, and of the estimated number of attackers, over 2 million in all, (but they really could not be sure,) only 500 or so surrendered, not wanting to be the fools that their comrades had been. Still, the fight had given them the idea of how strong their fighters were. The defenders well more than outnumbered their attackers, yet, despite that, they were giving the defenders all they could do to stop the onslaught. The Gnarl indeed stood as vicious fighters, and they could indeed adapt quickly, and equal the number of defenders by that ferocity. Yet, the numbers told the tale, and the carnage of the foe was great. Endymion then began to ponder just how much they had underestimated the willingness of the alliance to fight. The Gnarl must have thought that the defenders would cave into their bullying tactics and saber rattling. They never figured that there would be someone, one day, to stand up to them and let them know that, as long as there was someone in the galaxy that would not stand for tyranny, they would never be able to conquer and kill at their leisure. Still, the fight also told them that the attack on the Gnarl that had to be taking place at that moment would not be easy. The bulk of their forces had to have been back in their home system, and as hard as they fought, he could not think that the Marines and the Zoarian army would get off as light as they had. They had won in the Sol system, but until Endymion received word of victory on the other end of things, he could feel no peace about anything. All he could do was shudder at the thought of what the invading force was about to face.

6


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

"_Among the men who fought on Iwo Jima, uncommon valor was a common virtue." Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz._

The armada streaked its way along to the Gnarl home world, yet they had not yet contacted the Moundian fleet. The eerie silence that seemed to be epidemic in all the ships could almost be felt. It seemed as if it could seep into your joints and very being to the point of being uncomfortable. They had not yet received word of what had happened back home, and they all knew how ugly it could be. They were not sure where first contact would happen, but one thing they did know was that, once engaged, there was no guarantee that they would see another moment alive, or that the ship that held them so securely would exist a moment after. Considering that the entirety of the people there, save for the Sailor Scouts themselves, had never been truly blooded in combat, the nerves were high. There was no thought to try to bring levity, for they knew it would be a pitiful attempt at best. However, Venus knew that this was actually good as long as it did not get to them. Serenity was in contact with Venus, and she said, "How are you staying so calm. I'm a bundle of nerves!"

"I'm scared to death, to be honest," was her response, "For the sake of my sailors, I have to stay calm."

"I don't like it so quiet," said Serenity, squirming in her comm.

"It's actually good," she said, "That means that everyone's focused on what they need to do. That way, if things go wrong, they can adapt. It's like the old saying: the battle plan seldom outlasts first contact with the enemy."

Suddenly, there was surprise on both vessels for those able to overhear their talking, because, for the first time in her history, her reputation for messing up sayings did not end up a mistake. She had actually said it right. As everyone stared, she could not understand why. Her first officer then concluded that she must have been so nervous that her mind actually put it together correctly. Serenity then said, "I wonder where the Moundians are."

"I have to think they are on their way," said Venus in return, "They don't seem like such a dishonorable people that they would cut us loose now. They are there helping your husband after all."

Serenity sighed at this and looked a little pouty, not happy about how he was facing the danger he was facing. Venus then said, "I know what can help. Why don't you address the fleet?"

She thought about it, and she said, "Well, I guess."

She then said to the communications officer, "Open up all channels and tap me into the ship's speakers."

The officer then said, "Attention all personnel: her majesty—Queen Neo-Serenity the First—wishes to address you."

She cleared her throat a bit and then said, "Well, I guess we all know why we're here," a bit nervously, not really knowing what to say, which brought some chuckles that seem to take the edge off things a bit. She then continued and said, "This is an absolutely scary thing for me, and I know it is for you. It scares me that we are going to do this, and it makes me sad that I have to order some of you to…to…"

She began to tear up, and she wanted to cry, but Luna whispered, "Your majesty, you have to stay calm. Please, don't cry."

She fought hard to hold it back, but the sadness seemed yet to be conveyed to all, even if they could not see her face. She then said, with a quiver in her voice, "I really don't like thinking about it. This was something that, for a thousand years, the kingdom has never had to face. We have faced the Great Cataclysm, we survived the results of that, and for 500 years after that, we have had peace. This was a peace…well; I have to guess that this was something all people of Earth wanted for so long. It was a peace that no government could have given us, and it was rather forced on us by the disaster."

She stopped, and something began to dawn on her. After a pause, she then said, "Because of that disaster, we learned to appreciate how fragile life was for the first time in history, and because we wanted to avoid the sadness happening ever again, somehow, we were able to put differences aside, and now our whole solar system is populated. That had always been the dream of man to explore and expand like that, but politics always got in the way. However, someone wants to take away our peace, and make us sad again, and there will be people crying on both sides. I cannot help but think about the parents and children who will cry, or may be hurt, by all of this, all the losses everyone will face."

She paused again, and thought some more, and now it was beginning to dawn on her just who brought on this sadness, and that she had to learn a lesson. Serenity then said, "Yet, all this was because someone didn't care about how sad and sick she made others. All she cared about was herself. This sadness, however, is something that we must understand that her people will feel as well as ours. In fact, many of her people did not want this, and we must understand that we do not act out of vengeance against her citizens, for they were not responsible for what she did. Her military walks in lockstep with her, so we need to deal out as much as we get. However, we need to act in such a way as to say, 'Sadness was started by one person, and we will do all we can to end it as fast as we can. The swifter we do this, the less people need to be sad for the loss, for the longer it goes, the more dismal it gets. Thus, we cannot be scared of what happens to us. As I am here with you, you king is standing against the foe himself, willing to face the same loss that some of you are about to face, as I am willing to face it with you."

Suddenly, the pall was beginning to lift. Proverbial light bulbs were going off over people's heads, and it began to dawn on them. What she was really saying was that they could not think of themselves at this point. They had to think of all those that could be hurt if they did not fight, or if they were to lose this fight. They had to think about how bad it could be if the war lasted for years instead of what they had faced up to that point. If they could end it now, more of them could go home sooner, see their families again, and have more of a chance of seeing another day. They had to not think about how much they could lose if they fought, and think about all that could be lost if they did not succeed. Suddenly, many felt selfish for thinking about themselves. Self-preservation is natural, but they also knew they held the instinct to overcome that urge and put other first. The lives of many others on both sides meant more than their own at that moment and suddenly they felt encouraged. Serena then said, "Let the cause be bigger than ourselves, and remember to do all we can to be victorious as fast as we can. Perhaps, if we can win this, we can build an alliance and one people with all of our friends, so that the peace we all loved so dearly for so long could expand far beyond ourselves."

There was a collective cheer across the fleet. The crews felt emboldened. The fighter pilots were now keen for the battle. The Marines were fired up to either win, or go down in glory, knowing that their sacrifice would not be in vain. Once the transmission was ended, Luna said, "After all these years, you never cease to amaze me."

Serenity looked at her curiously, and Luna then said, "There is still a lot of Usagi in you, but you have so much transformed into the queen your original mother had always intended you to be. I am so proud of you."

Serenity scooped her up and hugged her, saying, "Thank you for being here with me!"

The only intention now was the anticipation of contact with the foe. However, the Gnarl knew that their home was the target, and so they rallied the fleet around the planet, trying to cause it to be so that they would beat themselves to death trying to get through. They knew not yet how things had gone with their foe in the invasion, but one thing they knew was that they were going to do all they could to ensure that the invading fleet had something to which to return. Venus was now pondering things, and she said, "All battleships, scan for targets at the most extreme distance you can fire the shock cannons. As soon as you have a target and are in range, fire at will."

She wanted to get the tension released and try to dishearten her foe while she could. The Moundians had not yet arrived, and she was not sure just when they would. Thus, she had to plan in case something delayed them. She was outnumbered 3 to 1, but she outgunned them by the same. She drummed her fingers on the armrest, and Artemis was about to say something to calm her when her fire chief said, "We are approaching the system and have targets at extreme range."

As soon as he said that, all batteries that could reach opened up. As soon as that happened, enemy fighters began to scream in. The Millennium fighters immediately countered, and the fighter battle ensued. They were trying to strafe the shifts, but the fighters were up to the task, and they were giving as well as they got. Venus then said, "Pull up the fleet and let the fighters contend. Continue to shell from a distance."

There was a method to her madness: she wanted to cause them to come out and face her, considering that she could hit from distance, and they could not. She was testing the patience of the enemy admiral, hoping that it was short. Meanwhile, the Gnarl was beginning to get frustrated. They were taking hits, and actually had lost a few ships. Yet, the attack was not as effective as it could have been, and still, if they kept it up, attrition would defeat them alone. It was clear—much to his own frustration—that he would have to close. It was then that he decided to send two-thirds of his force to contend with it. They would clearly outgun them, but he also felt that sheer number might help him win the day. They went at full impulse power and closed distance quick. As soon as they were in range, they began to fire, as did the rest of the Millennium ships, and now it was about to get ugly. The CT cruisers remained cloaked, but Serenity suddenly had a moment of inspiration, and she said, "Hey, send the invisible boat-thingy cruisers and get the other ones."

The captain of the _Hotaru_ took a second to interpret what she wanted and said, "Send the CT cruisers after the planet defenders."

Venus then said, "We need the ships here!"

"But, they don't have a lot of boats at their planet," Serenity responded, "They have a hard time seeing them, from what I understand."

"We need to defend," Venus responded, "The Moundians…"

Serenity cut her off and said, "They won't expect it, and it may help. They'll come, I just know it!"

Venus knew she was outranked, and she said, "Obey the order."

With that, the CT cruisers went to try to wreak havoc.

It was indeed a slugfest, as each side was pounding each other, fighters trying what they could, and they were taking the worst of it. Each side was beginning to lose vessels, and Serenity cringed to think about how many people were on each one. She was now not certain that she should have come, not certain she wanted to see the carnage. However, she heard that voice again, and she was now certain she heard it as a female voice, and a familiar one, which said, "_Fear not; only stay strong: help is on the way._"

She paused a moment and lost concentration on the battle, which was quickly brought back when a blaster round hit of the shields in front of the bridge. Despite the shielding, the whole bridge shook, and she fell out of her chair, screaming. She pulled herself up by the armrest, eyes as wide as dinner plates, panting horribly. The captain said, "Get the queen to the best armored part of the ship!" but Serenity then said, "Belay that order!"

"Your majesty, surely," the captain tried to say, but Serenity said, "We have to stay strong: help is on the way!"

She retook her seat, and did what she could to stay strong, though she was ready to run at any moment. More ships were going down, and they began to wonder if this was going to be a defeat again like back at Nekonia. Yet, at that moment, beams showered in from another angle, and began to back off the Gnarl. It was the Moundian ships, as a transmission came through to all ships on both sides. Because of the universal translators of the Millennium Kingdom, this could happen. As it turned out, it was Queen, who thundered, "The only commander to ever defeat a Moundian battle group now stands behind me! Surrender now or prepare to die!"

The Gnarl did not know how to react. They had never seen these ships in action, nor had they seen the kind of damage that disruptors could do. One thing was certain, this tipped the scales, and they knew it would not be easy now. Yet, the Gnarl pride kicked in, and the admiral gave the command to engage without a verbal response. If their exoskeletons could allow for it, the Moundians would be smiling devilishly. However, they had their own expressions, and their faces did reflect this. They then began to hammer the Gnarl, accompanied by the Moundian fighters. It became vicious, and now the Gnarl was losing ships one after the next. The admiral then gave the call to fall back quickly, knowing that he had to link up with the rest of the fleet in order to salvage anything. Yet, as he neared the planet, he looked in horror as he saw that _not one ship remained_! What did remain were the remaining CT cruisers, who had only lost about five total ships in the fight. They were now uncloaked, and ready to unleash the photon torpedoes. They were now surrounded! This time, Serenity called through, begging them to surrender. "Please," she pleaded, "There is no need for all of you to die! Your empress forced you to do this, and many of your citizens really want peace. Please, join us and help end this senseless fight!"

"Mercy for the foe?" Queen shot back, "Do they not deserve any?"

"Please think us not weak," said Serenity, "But we must be better than what we face. We must give mercy where they would not."

Some of the men were ready to accept, but the admiral was too much a fool as he shot back, "Death before dishonor! Fire!"

"NO!" shouted Serenity, but both Venus and Queen could read the writing on the wall and immediately ordered the counterattack. All she could do was bow her head and cry, as she could not watch the slaughter. Within about fifteen minutes, it was all over. Not a Gnarl ship remained. Serenity cried and cried, not wanting it to have to be this way. Queen then chimed in, "Indeed, you are a queen. Only someone with your strength could have offered mercy to a foe that would have not given it, and then shed tears for their demise. Now I know more than ever before that your cause is just. Now, come, let us end this. We shall send what few soldiers that we have to aid your invasion."

Venus then said, "Send your shuttles to us, as we can enter the foes atmosphere and fight from the water."

On the surface, rumors were beginning to fly as to how things had gone in space, but the empress was being kept in the dark, lest she do something stupid. It was now dawning on her own military leaders that they were fighting a foe that just would not let them have their way, nor had any fear of them. The only hope they had was the land war, and if the empress knew how bad it had gone, she might have ordered the entire population into action, risking the annihilation of their entire people. They were now beginning to realize just how insane their empress had become, and they were now beginning to question if they were as superior a race as their empress had told them they were. They were trying to let reason override pride, but they were engaged to the fight now. The worst thing that could happen now is to have an insane ruler try to become a military commander and be in charge. Therefore, they had to keep assuring her that things were well, and do the best they could with what they had. The two advantages they had was the sheer number of defenders combined with the fact that there was only so many that the initial force could bring. They had to prevent them from getting a toehold on the land, or else they could hold off the foe until their army arrived to continue the fight, and then there was no telling how many could come and strike. Another advantage they had was that, because they were a subterranean race, they would have to be dug out. As they pondered this, the ships began to land. The only thing they did not know was where they would land and attack.

Ceres and Jupiter were overlooking the continental land mass where the outer scouts said the capitol was, and they knew they could not make a direct attack. That would make matters worse. They decided on a point that was in between the furthest distance where they could have landed and the capitol. This was where the initial thrust would be. The rest of the force, with a combination of the Marines, Sea Bees, SPs, and Zoarian troops, would hit the extreme points to try to spread the defenses out. The least of what they wanted to do was get a toehold and a port established from where they could bring in the army and continue the fight. The transports were now being launched as the fighter/bombers began to attack, and the ships began to shell. The onshore batteries began to return fire, though the SEALs and the resistance had done a fine job of weakening things. Ceres and Jupiter demanded they go in the lead crafts, though they knew that they were going right into the jaws of the beast. The batteries were now aiming at the landing crafts, and though they were also shielded, they were flipping them over. Though the ships righted themselves, some inside had already been hurt, but the crafts marched on. The beaches were being swept as the onshore batteries were firing from the protection of the hills. The battleships were firing at the hills, but there was only so much they could do. The crafts now crawled up onto the beaches and used the advantage of the crafts to advance the troops. The hope was that they could get as far as they could before they had to unload the troops and expose them to the fire. Yet, they were only able to get as far as the middle of the beach when they began to hit thermal mines, and the sand that was being kicked up by that and the fire made it nearly impossible to advance. Much to his chagrin, Ceres ordered the craft opened, and to commence the attack on foot. As soon as the craft opened, fire raked the Marines and the soldiers. About half the compliments of the crafts died before the remainder could gain security behind sand dunes. Ceres and Jupiter quickly found safety, and had to steel themselves as they watched comrades drop like flies around them. The remainder of the crafts behind them let loose their compliments and used the now stalled craft as cover to gain shelter. What craft that could do so returned to the ships to prepare to bring more. The first part had been accomplished, but there was more to do.

In some locations, the advance was going well, but at the main attack point, the Marines were paying a heavy price. Yet, they were able to keep pressing on, not only because of their fighting strength, but also because they were using the attacks they had learned from their royalty, reflecting the branches each commanded. Still, the advance was slow, as the Marines were literally fighting for every inch. In this atmosphere, heroes who had not known they possessed such courage were emerging. All the troops were charging in to grab fallen comrades to drag them to safety. There were brave solo charges to spare fellow troops' lives, others jumping on grenades, Mercury's medics risking all to render aid. Further back in a more secure location, Mercury herself was coordinating both a makeshift hospital and her engineers to start to establish a port to make further landings possible. Ceres was in charge from the front, doing all he could to ignore the fight around and give commands of where the troops needed to hit. They needed to get off the beach to the hills and begin to try to dig them out from there. As they did, the ships offshore were beginning to become effective in their attack, and it now seemed that they were punching holes big enough to push through and take the hillsides in order to end the fight there and establish the toehold to continue the fight. There was bravery like had never been seen by any of that generation, and though they were all green, they were growing up quickly, and finding out just what they were able to do. In short, they fought like Marines.

The Gnarl, at first, felt confident as they were bogging down their foe, seemingly able to slaughter them at will. However, when they saw the numbers swarming in and how that they were able to continue despite the pounding, as if there was nothing wrong, they began to become disheartened. They wondered just how they were able to keep going forward and not be bothered by what was going on. Their observers were shocked at just how brave their foe was—just as courageous as they were. This was followed now by huge holes being punched into their defenses, and they hurried soldiers and mobile batteries to meet the attack they knew had to come. By this point, at last, the sand had been traversed and the solid ground was now gained. They now began to use the thermal grenades that they had saved for this moment, and they were chucking them into pillboxes, open holes, batteries—anything to soften them up further. However, it was now a stalemate, and it was certain that nothing more was going to be gained. Venus watched this and saw the data come in. Considering how they had been able to open the holes, they knew that there was the possibility to collapse the hill on the foe. Yet, that was going to be a last resort considering. However, when the saw the stalling, Venus now knew she had no choice. She gave the order for the ground troops to hunker down and stand by. The fighter/bombers went back to the carriers and went back for the bunker-busting photon bombs. They would drop into the holes while all the ships would close and pound the hills mercilessly. When Serenity heard this, she went to her quarters, not willing to stomach any more. The order was given, and within 30 minutes, the toehold was gained. At all other points, they were able to gain the toeholds without that action, but there was a cost. At this, they dug in and began to regroup as they assessed the casualties on both sides. The first battle had been won, but at a cost. The Marines had actually lost about half their number, and they now knew they would have to go slow as they awaited the Millennium and Moundian armies. It was not going to be easy.

Later on, Serenity visited the hospital ships and was saddened by the sight. So many were looking like mummies, some with missing limbs, some with severe burns, some barely alive. She began to say, "I'm sorry," but before it came out, someone said, "The Queen is here!"

All the troops began to cheer, and many of them were telling her as she passed that they would be healed up soon and back into the fight. It was obvious that some would never see the battlefield again, but they were all gung ho to fight again. It was then that she asked that all the branch commanders, (the scouts,) met her in the briefing room of the _Hotaru._

Once there, Serenity said, "General Ceres, how much longer is this going to go on?"

"Assessing the defenses," said Ceres, "It is going to take time to work through the tunnels. We can win the day, but I would say that it is going to take several months, maybe even a year at least."

Serenity could not take this anymore, and she then said, "I just wish that there was a way that we could settle this the way we used to. What do we do?"

Mercury paced a bit, and then she said, "With the outer scouts where they are, why not?"

Everyone looked at her and Mercury said, "We can contact Pluto, and she can gate us into where she is. The troops can go on as normal so that, if we are not successful, they can still try to win the day. I would say that, if we can capture their empress, depose her, and put her daughter in place, we could end this."

They all looked at each other, and Serenity said, "Then, let's do it like the old days."

"Then, let us contact Pluto, your majesty," said Venus, to which Serenity said, "No, right now, call me Sailor Moon!"

6


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

"_Et tu, Bruti?_" _Julius Caesar's last words._

Sailor Moon was already wearing her "Captain Hornblower" white jacket with ascot, epaulets of command, and her medals, (including her Navy Cross and other awards from the U.S. Government before the Great Cataclysm,) navy blue skirt with red trim and gold petticoat, and her scepter/staff. It was as tall as she was, with a large crescent moon on the top, and it looked like a small glaive. Centuries before, when she first started this, she was the most reluctant hero the world had ever known. Somewhere along the way, she had learned courage, valor, and compassion. It served her well when she became the queen of all, and now, it would cause her to lead the Sailor Scouts into battle one more time. Sailor Pluto had been contacted, and she was pleased to hear about what was planned. She opened a portal for the Inner Scouts and Marine Ceres. Once there, Mars and the Outer Scouts greeted them warmly. This was when Bleetra came forth, smiling broadly, which, of course, caused Sailor Moon to shudder a bit for all the teeth. However, she strengthened her resolve and extended her hand, saying, "In the name of the Silver Millennium Kingdom, I bring you greetings."

Bleetra then embraced her, causing her eyes to bug out a bit in surprise as she said, "Oh, I am so glad to meet the one that will bring us the peace I so desire for my people!"

After the initial shock had worn off, she returned the embrace, and because of her warm and loving demeanor, Bleetra helped overcome Sailor Moon's initial repulsion of the sight of the Gnarl. To her, they may have looked hideous, but Bleetra's personality helped people to forget what they were seeing, and to see them as beautiful in their own way. With that, the Inner Scouts were escorted through the cave system wherein the resistance held court.

In the caves, a whole culture emerged. The Gnarl that was a part of the resistance had now brought their families in for fear of being discovered and having them be persecuted. The more Sailor Moon walked through the side cave rooms wherein they set up housekeeping, seeing the families associate and the children playing their games in the halls, the less like beasts they looked, and the more like a people. She shed a tear a bit, and Bleetra detected this, and said, "Why do you cry, dear queen?"

"I have to ask your forgiveness," Sailor Moon said with some regret.

"Whatever for," Bleetra answered with surprised kindness.

"The truth is," Sailor Moon answered, with a bit of hesitance, "When I first saw your people, I saw you as hideous, and almost repulsive, for you were more different a creature than I had ever seen. It made me judge you wrongly. Yet, the more I see here, the more I see how wrong I was. I have to stop being this way, for, the more we explore the galaxy, the more I know we shall see cultures far different from anything we have ever seen before. It's not fair for me to let my old childish fears to get a hold of me. Please forgive me."

Bleetra chuckled a bit and then said, "Then, I suppose I need to ask your forgiveness as well. I would say that, to us, you did not look very attractive as well. I guess it's all in the eye of the beholder. Perhaps, as things go forward, we all need to be able to no longer look at what's on the outside, and see what is in the heart."

As they spoke, she observed how the SEALs were associating with the Gnarl, they having been given lodging by the Gnarl for the duration of their mission, and they were acting as if every one was perfectly normal. It was then that a child's ball bounced up and lightly ricocheted off Sailor Moon's head, and landed in her hands. A young Gnarl girl came running after it, and then dug her heels into the floor, frightened that, not only she may have hit a queen, but she also looked frightening to the little girl. She started to back up, but Sailor Moon grinned warmly and knelt down, extending the ball to the girl. The girl then stopped, cocked her head, put her forefinger in her mouth, grinned herself, and ran up to take the ball. Sailor Moon handed her the ball and kissed her on the head. The girl giggled and gave Sailor Moon a big bear hug, and then skipped away to rejoin her friends in their game. Sailor Moon stood up as Bleetra said, "Indeed, there is hope for all of us!"

The party met Chibi Moon and the Amazoness Quartet, and Chibi Moon squealed and ran up to embrace her mother. She may have looked about 14 years old by that point, (though she had been around for centuries,) but she had no qualms about acting like a five-year girl and to leap into her beloved mothers arms. "Mother, what are you doing here?" she exclaimed.

"We're making a bid to end this thing, just like the old days!" Sailor Moon answered brightly, "We just have to make a plan."

"You, plan something," teased Chibi Moon, "That _has_ to be a first!"

"Oh, not you too!" she teased back, giving a good noogie for good measure, "Mars is bad enough!"

"And just where do you think she learned it?" Mars added, and they all laughed. With that, they got down to business.

Kurge entered in, and though Sailor Moon had gotten used to the sight, his imposing form still intimidated her, for truly, he was a warrior of the first order. "So, what is the plan, your majesty," Kurge said to Sailor Moon. She responded, "Ceres is the strategy person for this," and she yielded to him. Kurge laid out the map of the tunnels that led up to the throne room and Ceres said, "Okay, what do you foresee as resistance?"

"Well, the empress is going to have her best guarding her," Kurge said as he pointed out where they may be at, "I would estimate about a company, maybe two, would be guarding her. It will not be easy."

Ceres rubbed his chin, and then he looked over all the approaches. He then asked, "How willing to face danger are your resistance soldiers?"

"They are brave men, and are willing to die for their princess," answered Kurge, "However, no matter how you slice it, they are not trained soldiers."

"And…the empress' guard has the advantage as defenders," added Ceres, "It would be an ugly slaughter, nothing would be gained, and the empress would flee."

"What do we do?"

"Leave that to me," said Mars, "I will put Sailor Olympia in charge of the SEALs for now, and mix them in with your resistance crew. With the way we are trained to attack, it would turn the tables for sure."

"Are you suggesting a distracting attack?" asked Ceres.

"Yes," said Sailor Mars, frankly, "Then we go in with the scouts and capture her."

Sailor Moon then asked, "Princess Bleetra, she is your mother: what is her fate?"

Bleetra hung her head and said, "She needs to stand for her crimes—her, and all her inner command corps. I don't want to see her die, of course, but, if she resists…"

Sailor Neptune came up and rubbed the back of her neck, saying, "Please, do not ponder that."

Sailor Pluto added, "If you want, we can put you on one of our vessels, so you don't have to be involved."

"No," said Bleetra, "I have to face her down, and father as well. He always taught me and my siblings to love, and I would hope that he would come over to us. However, it all depends. He often caves into her will, sadly. I do not know if you have a term for that in your tongue."

Sailor Uranus laughed and said, "We call that being henpecked!"

"Hen…" mumbled Bleetra, but Venus described the hen and rooster, and spoke of how it seemed that the rooster was not in charge of the coop, and that the hens were pecking him into submission. The light came on for Bleetra, and then she laughed, saying, "Yes, that would be father!"

Ceres, bringing things back, said, "Then, your resistance, peppered with the SEALs, keep the guard busy while the rest of us come in at this point, (pointing to the map,) and then we capture her, put Bleetra on the throne, and end this thing."

Everyone nodded, and went off to fulfill their tasks.

The guard was heavy in all points as Squila sat in the most secure part of the palace. It was true that the enemy was far away, and that she was being fed false reports lest she became further enraged and commanded a suicidal and futile defense or counterattack, yet, she her own subconscious guilt for her tyranny made her paranoid. She feared all and trusted no one. They were being vigilant, considering all the sneak attacks that had weakened them. Had they all not taken place, they would have most certainly been able to repulse the attack. However, the enemy now had a toehold, and there was no telling how this strange invader had aided the resistance. As if it was an answer, the outer most guard suddenly found themselves surrounded by flames. They screamed, trying to beat out the flames, and they were subsequently pummeled. The same pattern was being repeated on the other perimeters, and word was coming into other locations that there was trouble. Instantly, the guard lead officer ordered reinforcements to the hall, walking right into the trap. Olympia and the others with the resistance were now making short work of what would have been a slaughter had the resistance tried on their own. What was odd was that, for some reason, the SEALs were not making fatal attacks, but subduing attacks that did enough to make certain they would not come back to haunt them. It almost seemed as if the SEALs felt the queen's agony over the war that she cared not to see slaughter anymore. The resistance, however, was not holding back. Chaos was now in the tunnels, and word was now coming to the throne about the attack. Squila came to her feet and thundered, "I THOUGHT WE WERE WINNING THIS!"

"Your majesty," said one of her generals, but she slapped him hard, and shouted, "FOOL!"

"Do we evacuate," asked another aid, but before she could answer, above her on a ledge overlooking the throne came a determined voice, "Murder and mayhem against kingdom after kingdom who could have been your friends is unforgivable!"

Everyone looked up to see 14 brightly clad humans wearing their various fukus, skirts, and the green clad soldier standing defiantly over the rulers, with Sailor Moon front and center. She then said, "Adolph Hitler may forgive you, but I…_shall…NOT_!"

Quickly, soldiers were maneuvering to protect the empress as Sailor Moon said, "I, the pretty soldier and queen in the sailor suit, guardian of love and justice—Sailor Moon—and the Scouts, in the name of the moon and all that is just…"

They all then did the same hand motions as Sailor Moon and they all thundered, "WE SHALL PUNISH YOU!"

"Think again, fools!" snapped the empress, and her soldiers opened up. CreCre was faster to the draw, summoning a thick moss wall that provided enough protection for the 14 to scatter and go after the soldiers, and then the empress.

Ice cones, water, lighting and fire were flying left and right, as well as the creatures in the caves emerging at Sailor Vesta's command to aid in the attacks. Energy balls went flying, as Sailor Uranus was bowling down targets, and Sailor Juno was showing her skills hand-to-hand. They were highly trained elites that guarded the empress, but they had no chance against the scouts. Through the fray, Sailor Moon stepped forward to confront the empress herself and said, "Surrender now, because how you shall be subdued shall not be pleasant!"

The king started to speak as if he was about to surrender, but Squila shoved him out of the way, saying, "Silence! You have not yet begun to feel my wrath! We shall defeat you."

Emperor Grenj, however, looked at her, and said, "What do you mean 'we' _darling_?" as he went to Sailor Moon's side, "I may have been involved, but you were the one that wanted all of this…you and your crotchety old battleaxe mother and grandmother! I always told you there had to be better ways."

"FINE!" she shouted, "Die with them! You shall never catch me!"

She then sat on her throne and pushed a button. The throne slid backwards as a panel opened in the rock behind her. It went in and closed into a tunnel that no one save a select few knew was there. Sailor Jupiter was swiftest to leap up onto the platform, only to get there one second too late. Grenj then said, "There is no way through that door."

"Oh yeah?" stated Sailor Mars, as she focused and said, "LAVA BOMB!"

A red, flashing orb appeared on the rock and everyone stood back. It exploded and broke off only a layer as the remainder of the rock in they layer melted away. Sailor Mars said, "That never happened before."

However, Sailor Moon suddenly got a blank look on her face and uttered, "Sailor Mercury: focus your cold attack on the door."

"ARTIC BLAST!" was heard all over the room as the door went white. Then, Sailor Moon aimed her staff at the door and then two voices were heard instead of one, and both were familiar. Silently but audibly, the voices said, "_Silent Wall!_" and the attack went forward, shattering the door completely. Everyone looked stunned at what they had just seen. How did she just use Sailor Saturn's old attack? They had no time to contemplate as they all charged in.

The tunnel was long and winding, with barely any lighting to guide them. It was such that the Gnarl did not need as much light, and thus Squila had the advantage. Soon, they came to several passages, and Squila was heard echoing off the walls in such a fashion as if it came from every direction at once. "Welcome to my funhouse!" she said, "Welcome to the maze of your death from which you shall never emerge!"

Her evil cackle echoed off the walls, sending a chill up their spines. "PallaPalla doesn't like this!" said Sailor Pallus, hugging tightly to Sailor Juno's arm. "Ow!" she snapped, "Let go of me, you cow!"

"There's no time for that!" said Sailor Moon, though it did not seem like her. They all straightened out and assessed what was going on. Counting the tunnels, the quartet and Chibi Moon took one, Ceres, Jupiter would take the next, Uranus, Neptune took the next, Pluto, Mercury, and Mars went straight, while Venus and Moon went in the last tunnel. Meanwhile, Squila watched on some screens from where she was controlling things, and she said, "Perfect! Walk right into the trap!"

The quartet charged down the tunnel, but slowed as things got darker and dank. "This is creepy," said Sailor Vesta, not certain of where they were going.

"How do we know that we are doing the right thing," added Sailor Juno, "I mean, I heard stories about caves and darkness. We need to stop."

"The cave is narrow enough," said Chibi Moon, "I'll stand in front, two go to one wall, the other two to the other, hold hands across the way, and I'll reach back and hold your hands. That way, we can always go back if we have to, and if the cave forks, we can decide what to do then."

As they went, they could smell the moisture in the air, and heard the dripping of water as they went. "The walls are slimy!" uttered Sailor Pallus, "PallaPalla feels icky!"

"Just stay strong," said CreCre, "I have your hand—I'm right here."

Soon, the walls started to widen, but things began to brighten a bit, so it seemed that all was well. The looked over the cavern, and there was stalagmites and stalactites all around, but the middle seemed like a large dirt floor. Sailor Pallus braved things and walked out. As she did, the feel of the ground seemed odd as the others followed. The ground seemed to ripple, and then Sailor Pallus began to jump up and down on the dirt, giggling. "Wow!" she said, "A dirt trampoline!"

However, as Chibi Moon's boots began to sink above the toes, she realized what was going on. "We have to get off this now!" she shouted, and Sailor Pallus stopped. "Why?" she asked. Her answer came quickly. Because she had stirred up things the most under her feet, when she stopped, she sank to her knees. When she tried to extract her legs, she suddenly found herself up to her thighs. "PallaPalla stuck!" she said, and began to struggle more, disturbing the mud under the others, who were now down to their ankles. She sank to the middle of her thighs and began to cry. "Help me!" she said, to which Chibi Moon said, "Stop struggling, you'll only pull us deeper!"

The others tried carefully to approach her and grabbed her hands. They pulled, but they were making matters worse. Chibi Moon said, "Just stay calm, and we won't sink anymore."

"PallaPalla wants out of this," Sailor Pallus bawled, to which Chibi Moon said, "All we have to do is shift our weight and change our angles. We get our legs up and out and crawl across…"

Yet, before she could say more, it seemed that some of the sharper spikes coming from the ceiling were descending closer. They then heard Squila's voice as she said, "One way or another, you are doomed! How does it feel to know you are about to die?"

Panic set in as Pallus began to struggle anew, and the others were trying to get out as Chibi Moon had said, but their panicked state made things worse. Before long, they were all up to their waists, and there was no telling what they would do next.

Pluto, Mercury, and Mars charged down the tunnel, and they soon found themselves on a natural earth bridge that stood high over a high, seemingly bottomless cavern. The bridge itself did not seem very stable, but there was a cave stack in the middle, so they figured they would be safe. Yet, once they got to the center, they heard the sound of some crumbling and falling rocks. Paying it no mind, they pussyfooted further, and heard the sound again. Yet, they got to the end, and there was now a gap bigger than any of them could leap. When they went back, there was more of that sound, and there was gap the other way. They soon found themselves in the middle of the bridge, with their bridge slowly crumbling underneath them. "That's right," Squila was heard to say, "Consult whatever higher power in which you believe, because you will be heading to the depths of Hell soon enough!"

Ceres and Jupiter were heading down their hall when they entered a square room with an entrance at the other side and behind them. Yet, as they did, bars shot up on both sides, and the roof above them started to move, the sound of grinding rock and machinery echoing throughout the chamber. Squila then uttered, "I would love to see you tunnel your way out of that! Feeling flat?"

Her laughing just made Ceres more enraged as he started to try to get out of that mess. Meanwhile, Venus and Moon were heading their way when they seemed to enter a cylindrical space that ended flat. Venus was about to suggest that they go back, but before they did, a steel door slid down behind them, and another opened on the other side, revealing a large fan. It turned on, and they had all they could do to maintain their footing. In addition to this, it got colder and colder. "I can't wait to put your frozen corpses into my ice museum!" boasted Squila, and she began her evil laugh again. This was as Neptune and Uranus were entering a similar room, and before they knew it, a similar steel door closed behind them, and a fan behind a stone wall began to suck out the air. They began to fight for breath and find some way out before they suffocated.

Squila was now content that she had put an end to the threat. She began to pace and think on matters for about five minutes, wondering how she was going to punish her enemy's home system, and began to concoct the worst punishment she could think of for her traitorous husband. Suddenly, a pink, cloudy swirl formed at one end of the room, and out stepped Mercury, Mars, and Pluto. "WHAT!" she exclaimed, but Pluto said, "We now end this madness."

She started to turn to run, but this was when large energy balls busted down the door, behind it were the four and Chibi Moon, muddy and soaked, but nonetheless alright. "How did you get out of that!" she snapped, but Chibi Moon said, "Thank goodness for good friends. That mud was a great place to grow moss, wasn't it, CreCre?"

CreCre gave the "thumb's-up" as Squila started to head another direction and another door. Behind it was shouted, "SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

The door fell flat as Ceres and Jupiter stood on the other side. "This is insane!" screamed Squila, but Ceres said, "Every trap has an escape. It's amazing what electricity can do to mechanics. One good Tsunami attack took care of the bars."

She tried to move again, but a hole melted into the wall. Behind it was Venus, Moon, Uranus, and Neptune, as Venus melted a hole into the wall with a good crescent beam. Before Squila could speak, Uranus said, "You made a mistake in putting your suffocation chamber next to your freezing chamber. One good World Shaking attack and that ended your threat. Give up: it's over!"

"Not until I say it does," said Squila, now standing across from the group as a steel door came up between them. Apparently, Squila had much in the way of tricks, but she was indeed running out of them. She laughed at herself, and prepared to exit a door, but it opened, and there was standing Bleetra and Kurge. "You must have forgotten that I also knew about all this, mother," she said, "Stop, please, and it will go better for you."

Squila looked around for help, but before she did, she saw the large, bright mark on the steel door behind her, and all three hit the ground as a large bright beam shot through the room and about 20 feet into the cave behind them. There was now a huge hole, with the Inner Scouts and Chibi Moon standing there with their cutlasses and Sailor Moon's scepter all joined at the tips for their Bismarck attack. Squila was now beyond rationality, and she lunged, claws and teeth ready, but what seemed like that familiar voice emanated from Sailor Moon, which said, "Ah, now…sweet revenge! You shall pay for your treachery!"

She began to spin the staff confidently and parried the attack. Squila did not miss a beat and came back again. At that, Sailor Moon's voice was heard to say, "SILVER MOON CRYSTAL POWER KISS!"

The Silver Moon Crystal in her staff glowed and went forth. Hit Squila hard and she went tail over head, and landed hard and unconscious. Bleetra was scared that she was dead, but Mercury used her laptop scanner and visor to check her vitals, and she said, "No, she is alive, but she has spinal damage. I do not know if there can be anything done for that, because it is damage beyond even our science to mend. She is going to be paralyzed from the waist down."

"Then she will stand for war crimes!" said Sailor Moon, "This ends."

"I am surprised it didn't kill her," said Pluto, "Yet, it must be because you had no will to kill anyone. Perhaps the Silver Moon Crystal knew what to do."

"Yes, I suppose," she answered, "Besides, it almost seemed that there was something else guiding me."

"We heard the voice," said Mars, who then began to use her psychic abilities and said, "There seems to be two sprits with you: you…and someone familiar, though it is sketchy."

"No time to ponder that now," said Ceres, "We have to get Bleetra back to the throne so she can claim the crown and end this war."

"Will they listen," asked Venus.

"It is instinctive for us to obey the female royalty," said Kurge, "They will obey."

"Then, let's end this mess, and bring peace," said Sailor Moon.

Kurge carefully picked up Squila after Mercury stabilized her and they went to try to bring peace to the galaxy.

6


	29. Chapter 29

Epilogue

"_We are gathered here, representatives of the major warring powers, to conclude a solemn agreement whereby peace may be restored. The issues, involving divergent ideals and ideologies, have been determined on the battlefields of the world and hence are not for our discussion or debate. Nor is it for us here to meet, representing as we do a majority of the people of the earth, in a spirit of distrust, malice or hatred. But rather it is for us, both victors and vanquished, to rise to that higher dignity which alone befits the sacred purposes we are about to serve, committing all our people unreservedly to faithful compliance with the understanding they are here formally to assume. It is my earnest hope, and indeed the hope of all mankind, that from this solemn occasion a better world shall emerge out of the blood and carnage of the past - a world dedicated to the dignity of man and the fulfillment of his most cherished wish for freedom, tolerance and justice._" _General Douglas McArthur's speech at the Japanese Surrender and the end of WWII_

It was not long before Bleetra was set in the throne, and a broadcast was put forth to all the Gnarl on their home world, and to the armed forces. Mercury worked with the Gnarl doctors to insure she was comfortable and stable. Because of her harsh reactions to things, her paralysis weakened her, and Squila was now a broken Gnarl. All she could say was, "Mother, grandmother, I failed to avenge you!"

She was not in her right mind, as her failure to attain a vain revenge that meant nothing by that point, and had only grown into delusions of grandeur, had pushed her over the edge. Still, she had to stand for her crimes, and a tribunal was to be set up by the worlds involved under the auspices and conditions of surrender agreed to by the Gnarl. One thing that surprised Squila was that she who vanquished her was not vengeful herself. Oddly enough, she insisted, (with much protest from the queen of Great Mound,) that no death penalty be sought. Serenity even insisted that, though she would be detained, she was to be treated well. The first thing, however, was that Squila had to be seated by her daughter as Bleetra sat with the royal crown on her head and made the call for unconditional surrender. It was the only way to insure that the troops lay down their arms. Squila had to be there to show them that this was not some ruse. Military was military, and unless they were fully convinced that the cause was lost, they would never surrender. Bleetra insured the people that her mother had lost the ability to rule, and that Bleetra desired peace. Bleetra assured them that the whole thing was caused by her mother's…what she referred to as "sick time"…and that her mother realized that it was now a lost cause. The other nobility agreed to the crown exchange, and they all had their turns to speak. Although there were a few pockets here and there that would not believe that it was over, the troops all surrendered.

The Gnarl was surprised that their foes were actually peaceful and kind occupiers. They wanted them to continue their culture, and live their lives. Those that had not wanted war took them in readily and did all they could to help build a new world. Those who had supported the old empress were reluctant at first to help, but then, as they saw that their occupiers were nothing like the propaganda had told them, they too began to ease up and allow for things. Soon, the formal surrender took place, the allies all agreed that, after the tribunal of all war criminals took place, and after one Earth year of observation, if they were shown to be peaceful, then they could now join the alliance that was forming. They all together could form one united government that allowed for each system's sovereignty, but would also unite them as one.

The tribunal itself was an interesting one, as full decorum and jurisprudence was followed, and everyone got a fair trial. Though Squila was a broken Gnarl now, some of her generals and aids that had command with her were defiant as ever. They continued to hold the position that the whole thing was illegal, and that the Gnarl was being tricked. They needed to rise up to oust the occupiers, yet, because Bleetra was showing to be a great ruler, the people's instincts to follow her had transferred over, and the leaders' words fell on deaf ears. Only those that had been closest to the old empress stayed loyal to her. King Grenj had also turned himself in, considering that, he had worn a crown under his wife's rulership. Yet, there was enough that could vouch that he had little to do with the whole thing to the point where standing trial was not needed. However, he still surrendered his crown as a way of saying that he would no longer have a part in rule as a sign of peace and change that his beloved daughter wanted to bestow…what he worked hard to instill in his offspring. His daughter still gave him an advisory position anyway, considering that she needed all the help she could get in building a new world. He also gave him a position as an ambassador to the Nekonians so that a new world could be sought for them.

Once the tribunals were over, all involved were sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance of parole, but Squila would still be treated well, and put under house arrest. While this was going on, the Nekonians and Grenj with his Gnarl representatives had gone to the world called after Neo-Queen Serenity to see what further work the archeologists had done. They had further found how deep a relationship that the Nekonians and the Gnarl had once had, and they realized that this friendship needed to be fostered and flourish again. Thus, the new alliance all agreed that Serenity would be the new Nekonian home world. That world still needed to be settled and tamed, but, once the old records could be studied, they could find out how they had done it before, and make this a new home. Queen Serenity herself insisted that the world be renamed whatever the Nekonians wanted, but they insisted it still be called for her as gratitude for all that the Sol system had done for them. Wounds were being healed, but there was one more wound that needed healing.

A guard opened the door to the spacious and luxurious apartment that was provided for Squila who seemed to be wasting away. She did not want to eat or associate with anyone. Something had to be done. Bleetra entered in, and Squila turned her chair away from her. "Mother," said Bleetra, "This cannot go on."

Squila sat silent. She acted as if her own daughter did not exist. Bleetra hung her head, and then said, "Mother, you have to let it go."

Still, no answer came. Bleetra then said, "It's no use."

"Let me try," said another, familiar voice.

Into the room stepped Neo-Queen Serenity in her usual gown, bearing the staff that had brought defeat to Squila not but a month before. Squila saw this behind her in the mirror she faced and her eyes went wide. Serenity then said, "Fear not, because this is also an instrument of healing."

She then tipped it and said, "Moon Healing Escalation."

The Silver Moon Crystal began to glow warmly, and the room filled with rainbow colors all around, as if one was standing in the combination of a prism and a kaleidoscope. Squila felt warmth overcome her, and suddenly, feeling began to return to her legs. Once it was over, Bleetra said, "Mother, you should be able to stand now."

Squila, in complete surprise and awe stood up and, after a few unsteady and unsure steps, started to walk around. Tears were now filling her eyes, and she looked at Serenity in confusion. "Why?" she asked, "Why do you show this kindness to me after all I have done?"

"I am the guardian of justice," answered Serenity, "But I am also the guardian of love. Love conquers all things, and has actually conquered more people than war. I never wanted war, because my people had only known peace for 500 years after we remerged from the aftermath of our Great Cataclysm so many centuries before. I also know your desire to conquer was only because your mother and grandmother felt so insecure about what happened to your grandfather after the treachery that killed him that they wanted to conquer all just to prevent it happening again. They instilled a grudge on you of which you had nothing to do. The threat was long gone, and you felt you had to do only because that was all you knew. Truly, for what you commanded to happen to Nekonia, there were many who called for your blood, but I told them that this would not make anything better. We have to be better than that. Despite that, your two worlds have made amends, and have sought to restore the peace that once existed between your two peoples. Yes, you must stay in this state of arrest, for there are crimes you committed. Yet, that does not mean that you have to go on hating and acting as if your life is over. I wanted to see you healed to show you that, if the alliance can change their attitudes towards your people, you could change too. Please, let go of hate that really did not involve you, and know that there are people that love you, and want to see you well despite all you did, for that…is what love is."

Squila stood there for a while, stunned at what she had heard, and feeling, for the first time in her life, true love. This was the first time she had ever felt love like this. She had no idea what to do with it, yet, because of that, she now began to see how wrong she had been. She collapsed to her knees, begging forgiveness from all of whom she had wronged, and from her daughter. Bleetra went to her knees and embraced her, helping her to understand love.

Sadly, however, though healing had taken place, the guilt could not be removed, and only amplified. About three days after the visit, a guard came in to give her a lunch, and found that Squila had hung herself with her own bed sheets. A note was found that read as follows:

"To my beloved people, and to my children:

It had to be this way. I never understood love before, and I was heartened when I finally learned from the beautiful queen of the Earth just how to love. It was such a good feeling, and greater than anything that I had ever felt before. This is something that all peoples everywhere need to learn. Yet, I also now know just how wrong I was, and even to be permitted to live well and to live at all was a grace that never should have been extended to me. Many others suffered because of me: they are dead, crippled, homeless, and orphans, and yet I live far better than I should as compared to what I caused. I know that what was extended to me was indeed a sign of love, and indeed, I understand and appreciate what was done. I am so grateful that I was able to make peace with my eldest daughter, and I am grateful that she is going to be such a great ruler of my people. Please, forgive me, Bleetra, and all my children, for what I feel I must now do, because you must understand: to continue living with the knowledge of what I have done, even though I now hold no grudges to any, and I now know love, was torture to me. I looked at my nice gowns and surroundings, the fine meals, the kindness extended to me despite the tyranny that I spread, and I realized this is far more than I deserved. It is not right that it is this way. Even though it would have been nice to see my children grow well, and the grandchildren they would bring to me, in truth, it would have hurt more, knowing those that would never have that privilege because of me. I had to pay a price more than what I was asked to pay by Serenity and the tribunal, and this way, I shall have peace. Do not think of this as a sad death, but as the releasing of a burdened soul who felt that this was the only way to make right what she had done, and wherever I end up, I know that it will be better than here, and I will have a new start. I love you all. I love you my daughter, and, for the Maker's sake, look after the people."

Many cried "good riddance" throughout the star systems when this news was heard, yet others mourned bitterly. Bleetra was inconsolable for a time, but came to terms with this as well, and insured that she was buried in a quiet ceremony in privacy, as her mother would have wanted. In a sense, it was the punctuation mark on the whole thing, and at last, all was over.

Two months later, Serenity was heading into her second trimester, and she again visited Mercury for a checkup. It could be seen clearly now that the queen was with child, and the kingdom rejoiced at this. During the examination, however, Mercury took a sample of amniotic fluid to examine the health of the child. As she looked at it, Serenity made mention of the dreams she had after the surrender. She kept dreaming of Saturn, and felt like she was giving her counsel. She felt it was silly…up until Mercury made an announcement to Serenity. "Your Majesty…Usa-chan," said Mercury, with a curious smile, "That may not be as odd as you think."

Serenity looked at her oddly, but Mercury then said, "I have found two things in the examination: your child is a girl and her genetics…"

She paused, not knowing how to say it, because it was so bizarre, and after a few moments of thought said, "If my records on all the scouts are accurate, the genes of the fetus match the genetic structure of one Hotaru Tomae…Sailor Princess Saturn."

Serenity just stared at her, eyes bugged out and slack jawed. She finally stuttered, "You…you mean…"

Mercury smiled and said, "Just like she said, she would come back again, and you are the one to bear her."

Shock soon turned to elation as both women screamed with glee. They embraced and then rushed to the communicators to announce to the rest of the scouts what had been found. Pluto was in tears of joy, as was Neptune, while Uranus just smiled contentedly. The other scouts were bouncing around like four-year old girls at a birthday party hyped up with a ton of sugar. No one was more pleased than Usagi—Chibiusa—because, now, her oldest and dearest friend, was going to be her little sister. This could not have been greater news. When Serenity returned to the Earth palace, her friends were there, and they threw a baby shower for the ages. They spent hours recalling tales, adventures, and especially those that involved Saturn. Indeed, the Phoenix had arisen from the ashes. It was late when they all went home, and now it was just Luna and Serenity as Serenity sat by an open window, looking at the full moon in the sky. The now green and blue orb shown brightly, with the seas that faced the Earth forming the rabbit in the moon better than history ever could have imagined. Luna jumped up onto Serenity's lap and curled up, saying, "So much good came from the sadness we have seen."

Serenity began to stroke Luna and said, "I cannot believe that everyone turned out better for the wear despite all that happened."

After a few moments of silence, Luna then said, "I recall it so long ago, as if it was yesterday. I remember the timid 14-year old girl that came to my aid and showed kindness to me where others would not. I remember showing you who you were, and I remember your reluctance to want to be what you became. It seemed that you had regrets then. Do you have any regrets now?"

Serenity looked back at the moon again, smiled a gentle smile, and began to rock as she stroked Luna and said, "I have none at all."

Soon, both of them were falling asleep from the long and exhausting, but nonetheless splendid day, and as she drifted off, Serenity thought, "_I am Neo-Queen Serenity. I could name an age, but it would be pointless now. At one time, I was Usagi Tsukino, and I was just a poor student, and a bit of a crybaby. That's all. No one ever would have expected me to be anything in life, but, because of the love of a cat, a man in a mask, and many good friends, they helped me be more than my dreams ever could have imagined. I feel like I am living a dream, but I hope that it is a dream that never ends, and it will be all right._"

The End


End file.
